Lose It With Laura

🎃 Pumpkin Pie Bites 🍂

Ingredients:
• 1 cup pumpkin purée
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 cup oat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• Almond milk as needed

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix pumpkin purée, eggs, Greek yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla.
3. Add oat flour, protein powder, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix until combined.
4. Add a splash of almond milk if needed.
5. Fill greased muffin cups halfway.
6. Bake at 350°F for 18–22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool.

Cottage Cheese Glaze:
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 1–2 tsp maple syrup
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1–2 tsp almond milk

Blend until completely smooth, adding almond milk a little at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled bites! 🎃🤎

Low Calorie/ Low Carb Carrot Cake Recipe 🥕 🍰

Ingredients:

For the cake
1cup finely grated carrots
1 cup almond flour
2 large eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup granulated zero-calorie sweetener (such as monk fruit or erythritol)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Pinch of salt

For the cream cheese frosting
2 oz light cream cheese, softened
2 tbsp plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1-2 tbsp powdered zero-calorie sweetener
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

 Instructions

1. Prep the carrots
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Finely grate the carrots and gently blot away excess moisture with a paper towel.

2. Mix the batter
Whisk the eggs, applesauce, vanilla, and sweetener. Stir in almond flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Fold in the grated carrots.

3. Bake
Spread into a greased or parchment-lined 8 × 8-inch pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the center is set and a toothpick comes out mostly clean.
Cool completely.

4. Frost and enjoy
Beat the light cream cheese, Greek yogurt, sweetener, and vanilla until smooth. Spread over the cooled cake, then refrigerate for 20-30 minutes before slicing into 9 squares.

I spent the ENTIRE first year of my weight loss journey swearing off ALL sweets & now look at me. Turns out, they’re not the enemy… they’re just running fuel.🏃‍♀️🤣

Low-Calorie Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars 🎃 🍫

About 75 Calories per bar

Ingredients:
½ cup almond flour
½ cup pure pumpkin purée
¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
1 large egg
¼ cup zero-calorie granulated sweetener
¼ cup zero-sugar chocolate chips
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt

Instructions:
1. Mix the wet ingredients
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Whisk the pumpkin purée, applesauce, egg, sweetener and vanilla until smooth.
2. Add the dry ingredients
Stir in almond flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Fold in the chocolate chips. The batter will be thick but moist.
3. Bake
Spread into a parchment-lined 8 × 8-inch pan. Bake for 18–24 minutes, until the center is set and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
4. Cool completely
Let the bars cool before slicing into 9 squares. Refrigerate for 30–60 minutes for a firmer, fudgier texture.

Note***
Pumpkin and applesauce both add moisture, so these bars will be much softer than traditional blondies. Chilling them makes them much easier to cut and gives them that dense pumpkin dessert texture.

chicken breast and veggie egg white scramble 🍗
-
Whole grain oats topped with pb powder, granola and fruit 🍓

Happy Sunday ☀️

for my seasonal pumpkin loving friends🎃😋

these are two of my absolute staples each fall season when I want a healthy pumpkin treat to go along with the cozy season! 🍂🤍

Million Dollar Soup 🥣
Ingredients
2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
1 (11-oz.) pkg. chicken sausage, sliced
2 tsp. olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1 1/2 tsp. fresh cracked black pepper, divided
10 sprigs fresh thyme, divided
5 slices center cut bacon, chopped
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 small white onion, chopped
3 ribs celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dry white w**e
5 cups chicken stock
2 (15.5-oz.) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tbsp. heavy cream
1 lemon, zested
1 bunch dinosaur kale, ribs removed and roughly torn (about 2 cups)
Directions
Prepare oven and baking sheet:
Heat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Roast squash and sausage:
In a medium bowl, toss together squash, sausage, oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 2 sprigs of thyme. Spread onto prepared baking sheet.
· Roast until squash is softened and sausage has begun to brown, 25 minutes.
· Cook bacon:
Meanwhile, add cut bacon to the bottom of a cold Dutch oven or large 4 quart soup pot. Heat to medium and cook bacon until crisp, 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently.
· Remove bacon from pan:
Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving fat in pan.
· Cook garlic, onion, and celery:
Add butter to pot, swirling to combine. Add onion, garlic, and celery and cook 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
· Make roux:
Add flour to create a light roux, stirring constantly. When mixture has thickened, add white w**e, stir and cook for 1 minute.
· Add stock:
Add stock, remaining salt and pepper, thyme sprigs and beans. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes.
· Blend some of the soup mixture:
Remove 3 cups from mixture and transfer to a blender. Secure lid on blender, and remove center piece to allow steam to escape. Blend until smooth and stir blended mixture back into soup pot. Return to a simmer. Stir in heavy cream and lemon zest.
· Stir in squash and kale:
Add cooked butternut squash mixture and torn kale to pot, and cook until kale is bright green and lightly wilted, 3-5 minutes.
· Garnish and serve:
Top individual servings with extra thyme leaves and bacon.🥓 😋

recipes to share 🫶🏼

loaded chicken fajita sweet potatoes 🍠
&
banana protein brownie bites 🍌

CREAMY FRENCH ONION CHICKEN & CABBAGE SKILLET

Creamy, cheesy, savory, and packed with all those French onion flavors. 🤤

Makes 4 servings

🛒 INGREDIENTS

🍗 1 lb 98% lean ground chicken
🧅 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
🥬 5 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
🧄 2 garlic cloves, minced
🌿 ¾ tsp dried thyme
🧅 ½ tsp onion powder
🧂 ½ tsp kosher salt
⚫ ½ tsp black pepper
🫒 Olive oil cooking spray

CREAMY FRENCH ONION SAUCE

🥣 2 cups low-fat cottage cheese
🥩 ¼ cup low-sodium beef broth
🥄 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
🟡 1 tsp Dijon mustard
🍇 ½ tsp balsamic vinegar
🧀 ¼ cup finely grated Parmesan

FOR FINISHING

🧀 3 oz provolone
⚫ Freshly cracked black pepper
🌿 Fresh thyme, optional

👩‍🍳 HOW TO MAKE IT

1️⃣ Caramelize the onions. Spray a large oven-safe skillet with cooking spray and add the sliced onions. Cook over medium-low heat for 15–20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft, golden, and caramelized. Remove from the skillet and set aside.

2️⃣ Cook the chicken. Increase heat to medium-high and add the ground chicken. Season with thyme, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Cook, breaking it apart, until browned and cooked through.

Add the garlic and cook for another 30–60 seconds.

3️⃣ Add the cabbage. Return the caramelized onions to the skillet and add the sliced cabbage.

Cover and cook for 3–4 minutes to help the cabbage soften. Uncover and continue cooking for another 4–6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender and most of the excess moisture has cooked off.

👉 tip- Letting that extra moisture cook off helps keep the finished sauce thick and creamy instead of watery.

4️⃣ Blend the sauce. Add the cottage cheese, beef broth, Worcestershire, Dijon, and balsamic vinegar to a blender. Blend until completely smooth and creamy.

5️⃣ Make it creamy. Reduce the skillet to LOW heat. Pour in the blended sauce and add the Parmesan.

Stir everything together and cook gently for 2–3 minutes, just until the sauce is warmed through and thickened.

Don’t let it boil once the cottage cheese sauce is added.

6️⃣ Add the provolone. Top evenly with the provolone and place under the broiler for 1–2 minutes, just until melted and bubbly. 🧀🔥

Finish with cracked black pepper and fresh thyme if desired.

📊 MACROS PER SERVING

🔥 ~372 Calories
💪 ~50g Protein
🥬 ~19g Carbs
🥑 ~12g Fat
🌱 ~3.5g Fiber

Caramelized onions + creamy Parmesan sauce + melty provolone… French onion comfort food with a high-protein twist. 🧅🧀🤌

Something I hear ALL the time:

“Laura, what’s your secret?”

Well… here ya go. 👇🏼

💊 The consistency pill.

Walking.
Running.
Tracking my macros.
Lifting heavy.
Avoiding alcohol.
Getting enough sleep.
And most importantly… doing it over and over again.

“It’s not complicated… but it’s not easy.”

And if you’re waiting for the “perfect” time to start… this is your sign. Start messy. Start imperfect. Just start. You’ll be so thankful you did. 🤞🏼