Friday, May 24, 2013

Roasted Cauliflower



1 head cauliflower, cut into 1/2 -1 inch florets

1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs, (I USED GLUTEN FREE BY ALEIA'S)

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan (I CONFESS, I DON'T MEASURE AND I'M SURE I USE 

MORE!!!!)

1/4 cup olive oil (AGAIN, I DON'T MEASURE BUT MAKE SURE THE FLORETS ARE WELL 

COATED!!!!!!

Salt and pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 400º.


Toss florets with olive oil, bread crumbs and cheese. Spread in a single layer on jelly roll


sheet lined with nonstick foil. Season with salt and pepper. (since I use a lot of cheese I 

often don't need the salt) Roast 30-40 minutes, until nicely browned!!!! (we like ourS verrrry 

browned!!!)

Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Blackberry Bars






Ingredients:

Crust and Topping

3 cups all-purpose flour


1 1/2 cups sugar


1/4 tsp salt


1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled



Fruit Filling:


4 large eggs


2 cups sugar


1 cup sour cream


3/4 cup flour


pinch salt


zest of 1/2 lemon


1 tsp almond extract


2 (16-oz) packages frozen blackberries, thawed and drained



Directions:


To make the crust and topping, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch


 baking pan.


Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to


mix. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes, and add to the flour mixture. Process until the

butter is evenly distributed but the mixture is still crumbly, 30-60 seconds.


Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the mixture to use as the topping. Press the remaining mixture into 


the bottom of the pan, and bake 12-15 minutes. Cool for at least 10 minutes.


To make the filling, whisk the eggs in a large bowl, then add the sugar, sour cream, flour,


salt, lemon zest, and almond extract. Gently fold in the berries and spoon the mixture over

the crust. Sprinkle the remaining flour mixture evenly over the filling, and bake 45 to 55 

minutes.


Cool at least 1 hour before cutting into bars, or scoop out of the pan to serve cobbler-style.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Muffin Baked Mashed Taters







Just mash potatoes plain with butter or you can add yummy ingredients like cooked bacon,

cheese, parsley, green onion, garlic, etc. 

Stuff in to a greased muffin tin, run a fork along the top and brush with melted butter or 

olive oil. Bake at 375 degrees or until tops are crispy and golden.

Yes we still need carbs in our diet even when we are trying to lose weight so this is a great 

way to stick with portion control!!!


Also remember there are varying sizes in muffin pans so you can choose the serving size!! 


Using mini muffin tins you can turn this into a healthy alternative to chips or wedges too. 

You still get the soft potato center with the crunch on the outside without all the fat!!!!

Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Baked Crab Rangoon






1/8 tsp garlic salt

1/8 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 small green onion


4 oz imitation crab


3 oz cream cheese


14 wonton wrappers



Cut up the crab and mix it in with garlic salt, worcestershire sauce, green onion and cream


cheese (i would microwave the cream cheese for about 40 seconds to soften)

Spoon into wontons

.
Bake at 425 °F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Fruity Popsicles

Healthy Popsicles! I'm so making these when it gets warm out.. would be great if you have 

kids too!!!




Ingredients:

3 cups watermelon puree (seedless if possible)

1/2 cup fresh blueberries


1/2 cup chopped fresh strawberries


1 kiwi, peeled and sliced


1 peach or nectarine, diced small


handful fresh cherries, pitted and chopped




Cut the watermelon into chunks and then puree it in a blender until smooth. Set aside.

Set out about 1 dozen popsicle molds (amount needed will vary depending on size of 


molds). Fill each one with the chopped fresh fruit. Then pour in the watermelon puree until

each mold is full to the top. Place a popsicle stick into each one. Place into your freezer and

freeze for about 6 to 8 hours.

When ready to serve, run the popsicle molds under warm water for a few seconds and then


pull each one out.

Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Apple Fritters





1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup milk
1 egg
1 cup chopped apple

Glaze:
•2 cups powdered sugar
•1 1/2 tablespoons milk

Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon. Stir in milk and egg until just combined. Fold in apple. Pour oil into skillet so that it is approximately 1 1/2 deep. Heat oil on high. Oil is ready when a little dough thrown in floats to top. Carefully add dough to oil in heaping teaspoons. Cook until brown, about 2 minutes, then flip. Cook another 1-2 minutes, until both sides are browned. Transfer briefly to paper towels to absorb excess oil, then transfer to cooling rack. Make glaze by stirring milk and powdered sugar together in a small bowl. Drizzle over apple fritters. Wait approximately 3 minutes for glaze to harden, then flip fritters and drizzle glaze over the other side. Best served warm.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

(No Flour) Cookie Dough Bites



Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups canned* chickpeas, well-rinsed and patted dry with a paper towel
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (165 grams) natural peanut butter
1/4 cup (80 grams) honey (agave would be amazing too!)
1 teaspoon baking powder**
a pinch of salt if your peanut butter doesn’t have salt in it
1/2 cup (90 grams) chocolate chips

* My can was a 400 gram can, 240 grams without the water, and I used all but a few tablespoons

** If you need grain-free baking powder, you can use 1 part cream of tartar + 1 part baking soda + 2 parts arrowroot.

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350°F / 175°C.

Combine all the ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, in a food processor and process until very smooth. Make sure to scrape the sides and the top to get the little chunks of chickpeas and process again until they’re combined.

Put in the chocolate chips and stir it if you can, or pulse it once or twice. The mixture will be very thick and sticky.

With wet hands, form into 1 1/2″ balls. Place onto a piece of parchment paper. If you want them to look more like normal cookies, press down slightly on the balls. They don’t do much rising. Bake for about 10 minutes.

Yields about fourteen 1 1/2″ cookie dough balls.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Cajun Chicken Stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese and Spinach

Cajun Chicken Stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese & Spinach



Ingredients:
Serves 4

Preparation time15 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes


  • 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 4 oz pepper jack cheese, shredded (you can use up to 6 oz)
  • 1 c frozen spinach, thawed and drained (you can also use fresh cooked spinach)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp Cajun seasoning - click here for my homemade Cajun spice recipe
  • 1 tbsp breadcrumbs (I use Italian style)
  • Sea salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Lots of toothpicks 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Flatten the chicken to 1/4-inch thickness.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper. 

In a medium bowl, combine the pepper jack cheese, spinach, salt and pepper.

Combine the Cajun seasoning and breadcrumbs together in a small bowl. 

Spoon about 1/4 c of the spinach mixture onto each chicken breast. Roll each chicken breast tightly and fasten the seams with several toothpicks.  This part requires a tiny bit of skill and I typically use about 8 toothpicks in each roll to ensure none of the filling seeps out.  Be sure to count how many total toothpicks were used!

Brush each chicken breast with the olive oil.  Sprinkle the Cajun seasoning mixture evenly over all.  Make sure you get underneath, too.  Sprinkle any remaining spinach and cheese on top of chicken (optional).

Place the chicken seam-side up onto a tin foil-lined baking sheet (for easy cleanup).  Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Remove the toothpicks before serving.  Count to make sure you have removed every last toothpick.  Serve whole or slice into medallions.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.

Oriental Ramen Broccoli Cole Slaw






2 (3 ounce) packages beef-flavor ramen noodles


2 (8 1/2 ounce-ish) packages broccoli coleslaw mix 
or
(I used one broccoli slaw mix and one cole slaw mix)

1 cup toasted slivered almonds

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 bunch green onion, chopped (about 4 scallions) I use a full bunch, cuz I like 'em!



Dressing
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar (rice wine vinegar tastes pretty yummy too!)
2 TBS. soy sauce
Both Season packets from the Ramen noodles

1. Before opening noodles, crush into pieces. Open packages and set aside flavor packets.

(Before step 2 - I toasted the ramen noodles and almond slivers (or slices) in the oven on 325 degrees, on a baking stone, for about 30 minutes)

2. Place ramen, slaw, almonds, sunflower seeds and green onions all in large serving bowl. 

3 In a separate bowl combine oil, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and seasoning packets from noodles. Shake/stir/mix very well. Pour over slaw, mix well, then cover and chill a few hours.


4. Toss before serving. Dressing will settle on bottom of bowl.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe, However, I did make some changes of my own. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you. 



RECIPE: Healthy Beef and Sweet Potato Stew



HEALTHY BEEF AND SWEET POTATO STEW
low fat-low salt-gluten free

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
Cooking spray
1 1/2 pounds lean beef stew meat (chuck or round)
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, sliced 1/2 inch thick rounds
2 celery stalks, diced
2 1/2 cups fat-free, reduced sodium beef broth
1/2 cup prunes, diced
1 cup hot water
2 sweet potatoes (about 6 ounces each), peeled and diced into 1 inch chunks
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Instructions
Add olive oil and generous amount of cooking spray to a large soup pot over high heat. In batches, brown beef on all sides. Do not overcrowd the pan with beef or it will not brown.
Remove the beef from the pan and set aside. Add onions, carrots and celery to the pan and sauté for 4-5 minutes.
Add the beef broth and scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add beef and simmer for 1 hour.
While the beef is simmering, soak the prunes in hot water for 20 minutes. Drain the prunes, saving the water and set aside.
After the beef has simmered for 1 hour, add the drained prunes, sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup of the prune water, cinnamon, ground black pepper and salt (optional). Bring to a simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Stir in the chopped parsley and serve.
MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE: Ensure your ingredients are gluten free and this dish can be gluten-free.
You can substitute butternut squash for the sweet potatoes in this recipe if you'd like.


Disclaimer: This is NOT my own personal recipe. I found it on a site that did not have a Pinterest link so I placed it here to remember and easily link. Thank you.