Chocolate Oatmeal Avocado Smoothie

 I don't know about you but we've been experiencing humid and muggy days here in Pennsylvania.  This makes wanting to make a real meal unappealing since turning on the oven or stove just adds extra hotness.  The quickest, easiest, and coldest meal or snack in my book is a smoothie.  In lieu of frozen bananas I decided to go with an avocado to give the smoothie it's creamy texture.  Oh my goodness, best decision ever.  This tasted like dessert thick, creamy, and cooling!  I will definitely be making this combo more often, so delicious.

  

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1/3 cup of old fashioned oatmeal
• 1/2 of a refrigerated avocado (cut into chunks)
• 1/2 scoop of  vanilla protein powder (I used Spiru-tein)
• 2 tablespoons of dark cocoa powder
• 3 ice cubes

Directions: Throw everything except for the ice cubes in the blender and blend until smooth.  Add ice cubes and blend until combined.  Pour and enjoy!

What's your favorite go-to summer meal or snack?

Crunchy Quinoa Granola

I cannot stop making this granola, it is so good!  We are traveling next week to Houston for Spring break and I am definitely making a batch or two to take with us for an easy airport snack or breakfast over Greek yogurt.  (I am open to any recs for things to do and see and places to eat in Houston too!)  This recipe comes from Two Peas and Their Pod.  I modified it a bit since we are not fans of super sweet foods while using whatever ingredients we had on hand.

Crunchy Quinoa Granola (adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod)

• 3/4 cup Red Quinoa (The first time I made it, I used both white + red quinoa it turned out great.) 
• 2 1/2 cups Old Fashioned Oatmeal
• 1 cup Raw Almonds
• 1/2 cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
• 1/8 cup Brown Sugar
• 1.5 tablespoon Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 4oz container Unsweetened Applesauce
• 1 tablespoon Honey
• 1 tablespoon Soybean Oil
• 2 tablespoons Bourbon Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup Trader Joe's Dried Cranberries, Blueberries and Mango Mix
• 1/4-1/3 cup Dried Goji Berries (You can get these super cheap at your local Asian market)

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line a large baking sheet with a Silpat baking mat or parchment paper.  (I've used my Silpat mat and my granola is still a tad not crunchy even after leaving it in for 40+
minutes while stirring it every 10 minutes.  I have even reduced the applesauce and no dice.  So next time I am going to try the parchment paper.)

2. Rinse the quinoa under cold water and drain well.  In a large bowl, combine quinoa, oats, almonds, coconut, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together applesauce, honey, oil, and vanilla extract.  Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until combined.  Pour the granola evenly onto the prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until granola is golden brown, stirring every 10 minutes.

4. Take out of oven and stir in the dried cranberries, blueberries, mangos and goji berries. Let granola cool completely. Store in an air-tight container for up to one month. (Believe me it won't last this long!)

Notes:  If you are reducing the amount of sugar in the recipe, reduce the amount of salt.  I made this mistake the first time around.  It wasn't terrible enough to throw the batch away but at times I could taste the salt over the other flavors.  Also after letting the granola cool completely add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips for a special treat!

Greek Yogurt Cookie Dough

While cruising on Pinterest a few weeks back I came across a simple and easy recipe for Greek Yogurt Cookie Dough.  I didn't try until this past week and wow is it good!  Bonus points because it's filling too!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cups plain greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon bourbon vanilla (I don't really measure this, but this is my guess)
• 1 tablespoon raw crunchy almond butter
• 1 tablespoon Hershey's Special Dark chocolate chips
• optional: sweetner to taste

Directions:

• Place ingredients into bowl and mix, then enjoy every bite!

Variations: adding 1-2 tablespoons of dry oatmeal and raisins with a pinch a cinnamon for oatmeal raisin cookie dough.

Orange Macadamia Nut Granola

My mom wanted to know what to buy my hubby for his stocking for Christmas and I told her he liked Macadamia nuts.  Well she proceeded to buy him 3 jars, so I have been trying to find healthy recipes using these babies.  I stumbled upon this recipe and tailored it to what we had on hand.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups rolled oats (used old fashioned oatmeal)
• .5 cup sweetened coconut flakes (used unsweetened coconut flakes)
• Zest of 1 orange (used 1 large orange, may use more the next time since hubby loves orange zest)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup macadamia nuts
• 1/4 cup pecans (omitted and used half a cup of dry roasted macadamia nuts)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (used 2 tablespoons of soybean oil)
• Juice of half an orange
• 1/4 cup honey (used a little less)
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/8 teaspoon pure almond extract (used a little more since I didn't have an 1/8 measuring spoon)

Directions:

• Preheat oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
• Grease baking sheet and set aside. (Skipped this and used a Silpat baking mat instead.)  
• In a medium bowl, add oats, coconut, zest, salt, macadamia nuts, and pecans and stir to combine.  
• In a small microwavable bowl, combine butter, orange juice, honey, maple syrup, and almond extract. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir. If needed, microwave for another 30 seconds until mixture is completely melted. Add to dry ingredients and stir to combine. (I still microwaved the liquid even though I didn't use butter.)  
• Spread mixture onto baking sheet. Bake for 9 minutes. Stir. Bake for another 9 minutes.

The finished product, enjoy!

Turkey Chili Recipe

Now that December is here and winter is right around the corner I crave heartier winter foods.  We had a lot of turkey leftover from Thanksgiving and when I stumbled upon Jenna's mom recipe for Homestyle Turkey Chili I thought this is perfect for the cold weather we had been having.  I omitted the red wine she use used, subbed turkey leftovers for ground turkey and added sweet potatoes & Tobasco jalapeno sauce.

Ingredients:

4 cups of dry red kidney beans
1 giant onion
1 big green bell pepper
minced garlic (about 8 cloves worth)
2 jalapeno peppers (add another pepper next time, maybe habanero?)
2 sweet potatoes
soybean oil
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp brown sugar (will probably only do 1 the next time or omit)
1 tsp oregano
Salt & pepper to taste
3 tbsp of tomato paste
2 large cans of diced tomatoes
Tobasco green jalapeno sauce to taste
Leftover Thanksgiving turkey

Directions:

1. Rinse and soak beans overnight. 
2. Chop onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno peppers.  Heat up pot and add oil.
3. Saute everything in soybean oil over medium/low heat. 
4. Cube and add sweet potatoes and kidney beans to the pot.  
5. Then add chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, oregano, s&p, Tobasco sauce, and tomato paste.
6. Let it simmer for a few minutes then add  the cans of diced tomatoes.  
7. Shred leftover turkey meat and place into pot.  
8. Add to bay leaves and stir well. 

 I let it cook for about an hour and then just left it on the stove so that the flavors would all come together.  Reheat on stove when ready to eat.

Seriously this is the chili best ever, this will be my new go-to Chili recipe.  I couldn't stop eating it and bonus there was a ton of leftovers too. :) 

Homemade Larabars

I love that Larabars are simple and their ingredients can be found right from nature. They don't add any unpronounceable ingredients plus they taste like dessert. In attempt to cut down on our grocery bill I've decided to try making them at home. Making them yourself is so fun and the flavor combinations are endless. Here is a basic recipe that I came up.

Yields 2-3 larabars

Ingredients:
.5 cup pecans
.5 cup medjool dates (about 7)
.5 tsp bourbon vanilla
Pinch of cinnamon

Directions:
1. Deseed and chop dates

2. Add your vanilla, cinnamon, and half of your dates & pecans to your magic bullet or food processor and process until you get a date ball. Add the remaining dates and pecans and process till you get a date ball.

2. Dump mixture in Saran wrap then wrap around mixture and shape it with Saran wrap.

3. Pop into fridge for 30 minutes.

4. After chill cut into bars then indivually wrap them for a quick on the go snack.

We've been experimenting with add-ins such as a tablespoon of oats, sesame seeds, walnuts, etc. and so the turnout has been great! Next up, rolling them in strawberry granola before refrigerating them for a crunchy larabar.

Toasted Pecan Blueberry Banana Bread

 

 Toasted Pecan Blueberry Banana Bread (adapted from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 6oz container Chobani blueberry greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
• 1 cup of mashed banana (equivalent to 3 medium brown spotted bananas)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. Spread pecans on Silpat baking mat and toast for 8-10 mins in oven. Remove and chop. 
3. Peel and mash bananas in a bowl with a fork, set aside.
4. In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the butter mixture until smooth. Finally, fold in the yogurt, walnuts and bananas. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Homemade Cinnamon Vanilla Walnut Butter

Ingredients:
1.25 cups of finely dicedWalnuts
Non stick cooking spray (I used Olive Oil)
Almond Milk
1/2 tsp Vanilla
Cinnamon

Spray cookie sheet & toast walnuts at 300 degrees for about 10-15 mins or til light to medium brown. Cool for a few minutes.  Combine in blender or food processor walnuts, 1/2 tsp of vanilla, a splash of almond milk (just enough to get the right consistency), and cinnamon to your liking.  Blend until nice and smooth. 

I think this would be great with raisins in it as well.

Turkey Day Recipe Round Up

Two days until my favorite food holiday....I'm so excited that I've been counting down since October hehe.  Here are some ideas on what to make or bring to your Thanksgiving table this year.

Appetizers

Spicy Chickpeas

Roasted Eggplant and Feta Dip

Cranberry & Orange Mango Chutney

Cookie Dough Dip

Roasted Apple and Brie Bruschetta

Entrees & Sides

Bliss Salad

Autumn Apple Quinoa Salad

Buttercrust Rolls

Sweet Potato Mash with Caramelized Bananas

Apple Sage Brined Turkey

Pan-Roasted Cornish Hens with Calvados and Apples 

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Millet Stuffed Artichokes

Sauteed Cauliflower  with Anise and Cashews

Sweet Potato and Pecan Casserole

Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Squash & Cranberries

Dessert

No Bake Rocky Road Brownies

Apple Cider Cupcakes with Apple Cider Cream Cheese Frosting

Cinnamon Carmel Rolls

Pumpkin Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding

Anyone else's mouth watering? What your favorite Thanksgiving dish.recipe?

Recipe: A Blue Breakfast

I have been eating egg white blueberry oatmeal for the past week for breakfast. It's perfect for a cold morning because it's thick and filling. I must admit before egg whites in my oats kind of grossed me out at first but it wasn't until I was in Hong Kong where it grew on me. The whites make the oatmeal creamier and thicker and you don't even taste them. Here's the recipe!

1/2 cup of old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup of water
1/2 cup of egg whites (3 large eggs)
1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
Optional: cinnamon and apple pie spice

Place oats and water onto the stove and add cinnamon and apple pie spice if you wish. While waiting for oats to boil, separate egg yolk and egg whites. Once oats start to bubble add egg whites and stir until the clear liquid turns white. Finally stir in blueberries.

A few notes, I know apple pie spice sounds odd to pair with blueberries but it combines to make a wonderful flavor. You may want to leave the oats on the stove for another minute or two after adding the frozen blueberries as it cools the oats a bit. Just remember to keep on stirring so that it doesn't stick to the pot.

 The finished product:

Enjoy!

Recipe: Pumpkin Fries

With the Fall season and all of things pumpkins I find myself trying to come up with creative ways to cook pumpkins other than pie.   In my quest I have found the perfect marriage of fall flavors and fun.

Ingredients:

1 Pumpkin

Cooking Spray

Cinnamon

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Directions:  Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Chop pumpkin into manageable sized pieces (with skin still attached) and place onto tray.  Cook until tender around 45 minutes to an hour depending on your oven.  When pumpkin is cooled slice away skin, from here you can either puree it or refrigerate it for a different day.  Take either cooled or refrigerated pumpkin (without the skin) and cut into fry like strips and place on greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour depending how brown you like your fries.  Be sure to flip half way through to ensure crispness on both sides.  Enjoy!