Pumpkin Oat n' Honey Muffins (No flour, no sugar!)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 c oats (regular or quick is fine)
• 1 c plain nonfat greek yogurt
• 1/2 c honey
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1 t pumpkin pie spice
• 1 c canned pumpkin
• 1/2 c chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray tin with non-stick cooking spray.  My most favorite is called Baker's Joy (it has flour added in). You could also use a silicone muffin pan.  (I don't recommend using paper liners for these.
2. Place all of the liquid ingredients in the blender (including pumpkin), and then blend adding oats in 1/2 c at a time until smooth.  You may need to stop the blender a few times to stir.  Stir in chopped walnuts after blending is complete.
3. Divide batter among 12 muffin cups and bake for 20 min. or until toothpick comes out clean.

You could go crazy with the flavor combinations and possibilities here.  You could add blueberries, chocolate chips, and play around with different sweeteners and flavors of yogurt. I'm not going to lie and say that these are the prettiest muffins you've ever seen.  They look good coming out of the oven and then "sunk" a bit as they cooled, but they were moist, tasty, and something I feel good about feeding my family.  I made them sans walnuts for my toddler, but for me, I would add them in for sure.  Will definitely be a repeated recipe.  Be sure to check out the banana version too!

Banana Oat n' Honey Muffins (No flour, no sugar!)

Ingredients:

• 3 c oats (regular or quick is fine)
• 1 c plain nonfat greek yogurt
• 1/2 c honey
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 2 ripe bananas
• 1/2 c walnuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray tin with non-stick cooking spray.  My most favorite is called Baker's Joy (it has flour added in). You could also use a silicone muffin pan.  (I don't recommend using paper liners for these.
2. Place all of the liquid ingredients in the blender (including bananas), and then blend adding oats in 1/2 c at a time until smooth.  You may need to stop the blender a few times to stir.  Stir in chopped walnuts after blending is complete.
3. Divide batter among 12 muffin cups and bake for 20 min. or until toothpick comes out clean.

You could go crazy with the flavor combinations and possibilities here.  You could add blueberries, chocolate chips, and play around with different sweeteners and flavors of yogurt. I'm not going to lie and say that these are the prettiest muffins you've ever seen.  They look good coming out of the oven and then "sunk" a bit as they cooled, but they were moist, tasty, and something I feel good about feeding my family.  I made them sans walnuts for my toddler, but for me, I would add them in for sure.  Will definitely be a repeated recipe.  Be sure to check out the pumpkin version too!

Fresh Rolls

Ingredients:

• Rice paper (found in the dry section for oriental foods) - 2 per roll
• Rice sticks/noodles (I used the thinnest available)
• Lettuce
• Carrots (julienned or shredded)
• Veggies of your choice (cucumber, sprouts, peppers, etc.)
• Thai basil (cilantro would be good too)
• Shrimp or thin slices of pork or chicken (I bought pre-cooked, deveined, no tails shrimp)

      Peanut Sauce:

• 1/2 c hoisin sauce (oriental section of grocery store)
• 1/2 c chunky peanut butter
• 1 T ground ginger (you can buy this pre-ground which is easy!)
• 1 t garlic chili paste (oriental section of grocery store)
• 1/3 c hot water

Directions:

I am not even going to attempt to type the fresh roll sequence out.  But I will say that it's easy... just a little time intensive.  Better to just watch this quick youtube video and see it yourself.  Start paying attention at about 2 minutes in to see how to assemble and handle the rice paper.  I cooked the rice sticks (thin noodles), drained them and added a bit to the inside of my fresh rolls along with the veggies and shrimp.

One tip I will give you is that you need to wrap each roll twice (the video shows this) and also be sure when serving them, NOT to stack them.  Single layer only.  The rice paper is sticky and can tear when you are trying to separate them.

For the peanut sauce, just mix all ingredients together with a whisk.  I also served them with store bought sweet chili sauce too.

Very fresh and delicious!

Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms 
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 4 medium zucchini (1-1/4 pounds)
• 1 cup (8 ounces) low-fat cream-style cottage cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

• In large skillet, saute onion, garlic, and mushrooms in some olive oil. Add beef and cook  over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add tomato sauce and seasonings. Bring to boil; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cut zucchini into 1/4-in. slices the long way. In small bowl, combine cottage cheese and egg. Dust the tops of the zucchini slices with flour (this will keep the dish from becoming too watery). In a greased 3-qt. baking dish, place half of the zucchini. Top with cottage cheese mixture and the meat mixture. Repeat layer of floured zucchini. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
• Bake at 375° for 40 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle with additional cheese if desired. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Yield: 6-8 servings

Fruit and Oat Bars

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened
3 cups low-fat oat bran muffin mix (1 box, I used FiberOne)
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup walnuts (or other favorite nuts) chopped
3 cups fresh berries of your choice
1/2-3/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Microwave berries and sugar for two minutes, set aside to let cool.  Place butter, muffin mix, oats and nuts into a bowl and mix thoroughly.  Press half of the crumb mixture into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan firmly.  Spread the berries mixture over the top evenly.  Top with remaining crumb mixture and press until firm.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until top is lightly brown, making sure not to over bake.  Cool completely and cut into bars.  Delish!

Note:  This is a super quick and easy way to make fruit and oat bars, but I am sure there is a healthier, more complicated recipe if you're interested.

Spiced Chicken, Green Apple, Goat Cheese Avocado Wrap

 source

Ingredients:

2 Spinach or whole wheat wraps

1 Chicken breast, skinless/boneless  (butterfly chicken breast if you like)
¼ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon smoked paprika (preferred) regular will do

¼ teaspoon cumin powder

4 ounces Goat Cheese, room temperature

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

2 tablespoons honey

1 Fuji apple (skinned and core removed, cut into slices
)½ Avocado (skin and pit removed, cut into slices)

½ Lemon cut in half and juiced (seeds removed)

Kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste
Fresh spinach or romaine

Directions:

Combine cinnamon, paprika, cumin powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Place chicken breast on a flat surface, and coat one side of breast with spice mixture.

Heat your bar be que to grill.  Grill chicken breast for 5-7 minutes on one side. Turn chicken over and cook for another 5-7 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°.  Transfer the chicken breast on a plate to cool and slice into strips.

In a bowl, mix together goat cheese, cream cheese and honey. In a separate bowl add apples, avocado and a couple squirts of lemon juice.

Place wraps on a flat surface. Add an even amount of the cheese mixture in a straight line to the front of the wrap. Add apple and avocado slices, then chicken strips.  Take one of the wraps sides and fold it in to the middle. Roll wrap starting with the side that has the chicken mixture, top with fresh greens. Roll as tightly as you can without breaking the wrap. Serve.

Easy Thai Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:

8 pieces of naan or pita flat bread

2 medium chicken breasts, cooked (season with salt and pepper) or use a rotisserie chicken

2 c shredded mozzerella

1 medium bell pepper, sliced thin (red, orange or yellow)

1/4-1/2 small red onion, sliced thin

fresh cilantro

Peanut sauce:

1/2 c hoisin sauce (found in the asian cooking section of the grocery store)

1/2 c peanut butter

1-2 T fresh ginger, grated

1 T Sriracha hot sauce (adjust to your liking or use another spice/hot sauce you have)

1/3 c hot water

Directions:

1) Prepare the peanut sauce. Combine the hoisin sauce, peanut butter, and 1/2 tsp of sriracha sauce in a bowl. Peel the ginger and grate it straight into the bowl. Add about 1/3 cup of hot water and whisk until smooth. Set aside.

2) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Chop the chicken into small pieces and transfer to a bowl. Thinly slice the red onion and red bell pepper.


3) Spread about 2 Tbsp of the peanut sauce over each piece of naan or pita bread. Top with about 1/4 cup of shredded cheese, a handful of the chicken, some red bell pepper, and red onion.


4) Place the pizzas on a perforated pizza pan, cookie sheet or directly on the oven rack and cook until the cheese is melted and bubbly (about 10-15 minutes depending on which method you use). When the pizzas come out of the oven, top with fresh cilantro leaves and enjoy!




This recipe is slightly modified from one found on Budget Bytes.