4 Ingredient Cookies

These are my hubbies favorite and I don't feel guilty making them for him. The recipe is so simple and there's no eggs or dairy in sight. So here it is, 4 ingredients: oatmeal, bananas, peanut butter and choc chips... That's it! Super simple right? So simple and so easy to make. Here's what you do....

You'll need:

- 1 lg. ripe banana or 2 small ones (the more ripe, the better) 

- 1 c. of quick oats 

- 1 heaping tbsp of peanut butter

- 1/2 c. of choc chips (I used vegan, non-dairy ones from whole foods) 

Step 1: 

Turn on oven to 350 degrees. Then start mashing up your bananas (I use my mojito muddler, but you could use a fork or your hands) 

Step 2:

Add in quick oats and stir in completely until it looks like your typical bowl of oatmeal

Step 3: 

Then add in your heaping of peanut butter, mix it up until it's easy to stir. Should start to look like cookie dough with lumps 

Step 4: 

Last but not least, add your choc chips in and stir until evenly mixed in

Step 5:

Lay parchment paper on cookie sheet. (Sometimes I put a little olive oil spray underneath the parchment paper on the cookie sheet so it doesn't move) 

Then with a tablespoon, evenly disperse your mix on cookie sheet. You don't have to worry about them expanding, they don't change shape. 

Step 6: 

Bake for 12-15 min. I like to bake for 12 min on the middle rack and then put them on the top shelf for the remaining 3 min so they brown and get a crispier outer edge :) 

So there you go, super simple and super tasty! Hope you all enjoy them as much as we do :) 

   

Hummus Chicken

So when I started "eating clean" this was one of the most highly recommended dinners I received. And it's delicious! But since I started making it in January, I've tweaked the recipe a little to my liking. Here is the original recipe that I followed from Pinterest. http://pinterest.com/pin/266134659203811618/

The following is my recipe. You will need: 

- 2 boneless chicken breasts

- hummus of choice (I use cilantro-jalepeno) 

-1 LB of brussell sprouts

-1 lemon

-olive oil

-paprika 

-salt & pepper

-13x9 baking pan

-foil or olive oil spray

-medium bowl

-sharp knife 

-cutting board

-strainer 

-basting brush

My recipe is as follows:

Start heating oven @ 450 degrees. Cut brussell sprouts in half and rinse off

Then put brussell sprouts in a medium size bowl. Add 1/2 of the hummus to the bowl and mix around. 

Put foil in 13x9 baking pan. Pour brussels in the pan.

Take chicken and cut off any excess fatty skin. Then cut each breast in half. So you'll have 4 small pieces. Then turn so the smooth side is down. Salt & pepper them and then coat with hummus, but save some for the opposite side. 

Then place chicken in pan over brussell sprouts with room in between breasts. Spread the rest of the hummus on the top. Take lemon, cut in half, squeeze over dish and then sprinkle paprika over each piece of chicken. 

Then place in the oven on middle rack for 20-25 min. Once timer goes off, I usually gently roll a piece of chicken over, not to rub off the hummus and make a slit in the center on the biggest piece to make sure it's cooked thru. I also try a brussell sprout to make sure they are a soft consistancy and not still hard or raw tasting. If that's the case, put back in for a couple more min. Once the dish is done I will squeeze the 2nd half of the lemon over the top. Then plate and serve! :) 

Hope you enjoy, let me know if you have any questions :)

Sauteed Honey Bananas Slices

After seeing this recipe on Pinterest I knew I had to try it. It look simple, quick and yummy, and it was!

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 slightly under-ripened banana, sliced

1 tablespoon honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp olive oil

Directions

1) combined water and honey and slightly heat in microwave safe bowl. Stir in cinnomon and set aside.

2) drizzle olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add water/ honey/ cinnamon to pan and lower heat. Arrange bananas in skillet and flip every 1-2 minutes until they start to brown. (I had to use tongs and a fork to flip them because they are very sticky) 

Extra Tip:

The longer you flip them, the crispier they get. Or else they turn out very gooey. Hope you love them as much as we did :)

Veggie Delight

I love this recipe......I  used to make this with chicken. But after going vegetarian, I cut it out and l
actually like it better. It's almost like a guilt-free dinner :)

Serves 3

Ingredients

1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 yellow or orange pepper
5-7 asparagus sticks or bruseel spouts
1 can quarter cut artichoke hearts
1 large lemon or 2 small lemons
1tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1tbsp lemon pepper
1 tsp sea salt
2 bags of minute brown rice (optional)

Or if you have garlic lovers seasoning and lemon pepper seasoning from www:flavorgods:com add 1 tbsp of each instead of spices above

Preparation

1) cut and remove seeds and chop into 1" pieces
2) remove ends of asparagus ( last 3/"4-1" ) , then cut into thirds. Or cut brussel spouts in half after removing outer layer
3) open and drain can of artichokes
4) boil water as directed for brown rice (optional)

Directions

1) add olive oil to pan and heat on high heat until oil is hot
2) continue brown rice directions
3) add all veggies, spices and lemon juice to sauté pan, cover and let sit on medium heat for 3-5 minutes  (If veggies are starting to brown then skip step 4 altogether.)

4) remove cover toss veggies and let sit for additional 3-5 minutes.
5) remove cover and continue to stir veggies on low heat every 30 seconds until they start to brown. ( I like to toss them aggressively so that the artichoke quarters start to come apart, instead of staying in chunks)
6) once all is lightly browned, remove from heat and set aside
7) add 1 serving of brown rice (optional) and veggies to bowl and enjoy!

Extra tip:
If I make it with rice,  I like to add a tbsp of butter and some pepper to brown rice before I serve it. Give it a heartier feel to the meal :)

Artichoke Pesto Pasta

In my household we LOVE PESTO, so one night when I was looking through the cabinets and put this lil concoction together.

Serves 2:

Ingredients

1 Can of quarter cut artichoke hearts
1 Red pepper
1 Bag of  Gluten Free Natures Eartly Chioce Quinoa Pasta (Or whatever you prefer)
1 7 oz container of pesto sauce
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp sea salt
1 small lemon or half lemon


Or if you have bought Garlic Lovers Seasoning from www:flavorgods:com  then use 2 tbsp of that instead of the garlic & onion powder and sea salt. Much easier, better and healthier for you.

Preparation 

1) Boil water, add small amount of olive oil to water
2) Remove seeds and chop up red pepper into 1" pieces
3) Open artichoke hearts and drain liquid

Directions

1) Add pasta and cook as directed on bag
2) Add red pepper and artichoke to sauté pan, with all spices, lemon juice and olive oil. Sauté and toss veggies until they start to brown, set aside on low heat
3) Drain pasta and add back to pan, add pesto sauce and veggies,  continue to toss on medium heat until pesto sauce is warm.
4) Serve in bowl garnish with parmesan cheese (optional)
5) Enjoy!

Sweet Potato & Blackbean Corn Salsa Tacos

This is a new fav in our house and its healthy too :) but it was super simple to make. Here's my recipe:

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• Sweet potatoes, peeled & cubed – 1lb.
• Garlic, minced – 1-3 clove
• Whole kennel corn - 1 can
• Black beans – whole can
• Veg / canola / grapeseed oil – 1 tbs.
• Paprika – ½ tbs.
• Cumin – ½ tsp.
• Cayenne – a pinch
• Tortillas 
• A jar of your favorite salsa 
• Avocado (optional) – 1 small ripe
• Limes – 1
• Cilantro- garnish

Prep

1) Peel & cube the sweet potatoes
2) Mince garlic cloves

3) Open can of black beans

4) Open can of corn

Make

1. Heat your largest frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tbs. oil to the pan. Once oil is heated, add garlic. Sauté until softened 
2. Next add sweet potatoes to the pan with all spices. Add 2 tbs. of water to the pan, cover with a lid, and lower heat to a simmer. Cook for ~5 to 8 minutes, until sweet potatoes are softened
3. In separate pan combined black beans and corn and heated through out. When finished add 2 tablespoons of your favorite salsa and mix all together. 
4. Warm pan and spray with olive oil at medium heat, add tortillas, cook until crisp on each side. About 3 min each side.
5. Once crisp add black bean corn salsa then sweet potatoes, squeeze of lime and cilantro to garnish and ENJOY! 

Avocado Lemon Pesto Pasta

I'm so excited, this is my first blog :).  I found this recipe on Pinterest and it was one of those pins that looks good in theory but you never know until you try. So as always, I did.

First off, I should mention that I did alter the recipe to taste and preference. So I used gluten free fettuccine pasta and lemon. So I've adjusted the recipe to my prefernces. The recipe is as follows:

 Serves 2:

Ingredients:

• 1 medium or 2 small sized ripe Avocado, pitted
• 1 1/2 lemon, juiced (small-medium size)
• 1/2 of a lemon zest to garnish
• 1-3 garlic cloves, to taste (I'd suggest 2 or it's super garlicky)
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
• ~1/4 cup Fresh Basil, (optional, I used a tbsp of premade pesto sauce)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• i bag of your choice of pasta (I used Sam Mills 100% Corn Pasta, it's G-free)  
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Bring several cups of water to a boil in a medium sized pot. Add in your pasta, reduce heat to medium, and cook until Al Dente, about 8-10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, make the sauce by placing the garlic cloves, lemon juice, and olive oil into a food processor. I used my magic bullet because I don't have a food processor yet. Process until smooth. Now add in the pitted avocado, basil, and salt. Process until smooth and creamy.

3. When pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse in a strainer and place pasta into a large bowl. Pour on sauce and toss until fully combined. Garnish with lemon zest and black pepper. Serve immediately. Makes 2 servings.

Extra Tips:

I love, love, love lemon. So I always add more. But for this recipe it called for only 1/2 of a juiced lemon. I could barley taste the lemon, so I added a whole other lemon. I also added a secret seasoning that I use in a lot of my cooking. Its called Garlic Lovers Seasoning (It's got a lil bit of everything in it, plus its Low Salt, No MSG, G-Free and Paleo). Made by www.flavorgod.com. Its a local producer here in Orange County. But you can buy it online. For most of my quick recipes, I just add that and I'm done. They also have Lemon Pepper Seasoning and the Everything Seasoning (in spicy or regular). All are amazing. Also I should add that G-Free pasta is very temperamental and you need to watch it carefully. It can for from uncooked to mushy fast. But after adding those extra things the pasta was great. One last thing, since its made with avocado it doesn't reheat we'll. Not good for leftovers. Hope this helped and thanks for looking at my page.