Carrot, Apple, and Pecan Multigrain Muffins

I found the original recipe for these fiber-rich muffins on the back of a Hodgson Mill's Multigrain Hot Cereal box. These muffins are moist, not too dense, and rich in texture with the perfect amount of sweetness. They make a great whole grain addition to breakfast, or as a nutritious snack. 

1 cup Hodgson Mill's Multigrain Hot Cereal

1 cup all-purpose, unbleached flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup carrots, shredded

1 cup apples, peeled and chopped

1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk

2 "flax eggs" **

1/4 cup safflower oil

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

**Flax eggs: 2 tbsp flax seeds, ground, and mixed with 6 tbsp water. Set aside and allow to thicken before adding to other ingredients. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Mix dry ingredients.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined.

Fill muffin pans to the top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Makes 12 muffins.

Nutrition Information per muffin:

205 kcal

10 g fat

3 g fiber

11 g sugar

4 g protein

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies with Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Filling

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies with Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Filling
Adpated from Cooking Light

Cookies:
1 cup sugar
1/2 stick butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 cups all=purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup lowfat buttermilk

Filling:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 stick butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

For the cookies, cream sugar and butter until well blended. Add vanilla and egg, beat until combined. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the wet ingredients. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a baking sheet. Make sure to have an even number of cookies and to leave a few inches between the cookies because they spread! Bake for 10 minutes, cool on pan for 5 minutes. Cool completely before filling.

For the filling, cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt until well blended. Continue blending until the filling is fluffy. Gently stir in mini chocolate chips.

To make the sandwiches, spread about 2 tablespoons of cream cheese filling onto the bottom side of a cooled cookie, top with a second cookie. Repeat procedure with the remaining cookies and filling.

Depending on the size of your cookies, this recipe will make 10 to 16 sandwich cookies. My cookies were pretty big so I only had 10. Be prepared for these to disappear fast!

Quinoa Bean Pilaf

Makes 4 -5 servings

1 cup dry quinoa (rinsed in cold water)

2 cups water

1/2 orange or red bell pepper, diced

1/3 yellow squash, diced

1/3 cucumber, diced

1 tomato, diced

1/2 cup cooked beans (I used pinto)

Lemon Herb Vinaigrette* (recipe follows)

In a medium saucepan, add quinoa, water, bell peppers, and squash. Bring to a boil, then simmer and cover until all of the liquid is absorbed (about 10-15 minutes). Once cooked, transfer to another bowl, add cucumber, tomato, and beans. Toss together with lemon herb vinaigrette. 

Lemon Herb Vinaigrette

2 lemons, freshly squeezed

1-2 garlics, minced

2 tsp dijon mustard

2 tsp Herbs de Provence

salt & pepper

1/2 cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a container with a tight fitting lid and shake vigorously until well combined. 

Italian Dressing

This is the dressing we always have on hand at my house. It's a classic Italian dressing, bursting with fresh flavor. 

Balsamic Italian, Regular Italian

Italian Dressing

1/4 cup vinegar 

3 tablespoons water

Italian Spices*

1/2 cup olive oil

In a container with a tight lid, mix vinegar, water, and spices together. Shake vigorously until well blended. Add oil and shake again until well blended. 

Notes:

-We keep our dressing in the pantry, but you can refrigerate it if you wish. 

- Use whatever vinegar you have on hand. I love using balsamic or apple cider vinegar.

-You have a few different options for the Italian spices. You can use a prepared Italian spice blend, make your own using your favorite herbs and spices, or Good Seasons makes a good, all natural Italian dressing mix. 

Vanilla Almond Coconut Granola

A yummy low fat, lower cal version of store bought granola. Feel free to experiment with add-ins and different flavorings.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups thick cut rolled oats
• 1/2 cup sliced raw almonds
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 2 tbsp agave nectar, or honey or maple syrup
  
• 2 tbsp walnut oil, or any other vegetable oil
  
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a sauce pan, heat agave nectar until it starts to thin.
Quickly add oil, sugar, and vanilla and whisk until smooth.
Stir in oats, almonds, and coconut until well combined.
Spread mixture on a large baking sheet in a thin layer.
Bake f0r 20-25 minutes, stirring mixture every 5 minutes to insure even cooking.

Makes about 3.5 cups.

Serving Size: 1/4 cup, about 115 calories.

Fig Infused Balsamic Vinaigrette

A vinaigrette is generally one part vinegar to 3 parts oil and flavored with a variety of herbs and spices. They are simple to make and a great alternative to store bought dressings that often contains added sugars and preservatives. 

Fig Infused White Balsamic Vinaigrette

This is slightly sweet, light dressing that does wonders on a plain salad. For a lighter dressing, I use 1 part vinegar to 2 parts oil. I usually make a big batch to have on hand for the whole week. 

1/3 cup White Balsamic Fig Infused Vinegar

2/3 cup olive oil

Salt & pepper

In a small bowl, or dressing container, combine white balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Since there are no emulsifiers in this dressing, you will need to shake it prior to each use. 

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Tacos

This is very quick meal to throw together during the week night. 

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Filling

Makes about 4 servings, 2 tacos per person

Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste
• 1 (14oz) can black beans
• 8 corn tortillas

Peel and cut sweet potato into cubes. 

Microwave in a bowl for about 5 minutes to speed up the cooking process. 

In a skillet, sauté garlic in olive oil for a minute. 

Add the par-cooked sweet potatoes and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.

Once the potatoes are crusty, add the black beans and cook until everything is heated through.

In a separate skillet, warm up the corn tortillas. (I like my corn tortillas to be crispy, but still foldable).

To assemble: top the tortillas with the potato/bean mixture and salsa. 

And viola! Sweet potato and black bean tacos.

Carrot Cake 2 Ways

Carrot Cake

My dad's all time favorite cake is carrot cake. So that's what I usually make for him on his birthday. We have a family recipe that was my grandmother's. Her recipe yields a deliciously moist and decadent cake.

Carmina's Carrot Cake

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1 1/4 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup walnuts

Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. In a larger bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until just combined. Stir in the nuts. Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

As you can tell, this recipe isn't lowfat! It's prefectly fine to have once in awhile, as I believe all things in moderation. However, my mom requested I make a healthier cake for my dad. So using my grandmother's recipe as a starting point I came up with the following recipe.

Mon's Carrot Coconut Cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
  
• 1 egg
• 3 flax-eggs*
  
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups shredded carrots
  
• 1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
  

Sift dry ingredients and set aside. In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs, applesauce, vanilla, carrots, and coconut. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in the walnuts. Pour into a greased cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

*Notes:
-For the flax eggs: combine 1 tbsp flaxseed meal with 3 tbsp warm water for each "egg". To substitute for 3 eggs, I used 3 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 9 tbsp warm water. Let the mixture thicken for a few minutes.
-I used a 9" round cake pan and it came out pretty thin. I recommend using a smaller pan, for a thicker cake.

Orange Zest Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 package reduced fat cream cheese
• 1 c powdered sugar
• few tablespoons of milk (depends on desired conisistency)
  
• 1 tsp vanilla
• zest of one orange
• coconut to decorate

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Fold in the orange zest. Frost the cake and decorate with coconut if desired.

*This frosting is sweet, but not overly sweet. You may want to experiment with the proportions of sugar/creamcheese to suit your taste.

The finished cake

My cake turned out dense, moist and delicious as well. It's full of texture from the walnuts, carrots, and coconut. I have to say the frosting is the best part!


My dad was happy he blew out all of the candles! He kind of cheated though because there definitely was not 50 candles on his cake!

Spiced Pear Bran Muffins

What do you do with an abundance of overripe pears? In the past, I've made a tasty pear crumble. But I wanted to try incorporating pears into a baked good. Apples work in muffins, so why not pears?

I'm happy to report that I succeeded at making a moist and nutritious muffin that is great for breakfast or snacks. These muffins are lowfat, high in fiber and packed with chunks of pears.

Spiced Pear Bran Muffins

• 3/4 c whole wheat flour
• 3/4 c oat bran
• 3/4 c wheat bran
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/2 c brown sugar
  
• 1/3 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 c plain, lowfat yogurt
• 1/3 c + 1 tbsp egg whites
  
• 2 tbsp oil (I use walnut oil)
  
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 medium sized ripe pears

In a medium bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and set aside. Chop the pears into bite-sized pieces and place in a large bowl. Add brown sugar, applesauce, yogurt, egg whites, oil, and vanilla. Carefully mix together. Add the flour/bran mixture to the pear mixture. Fold the ingredients together until well combined.

Pour into 12 greased muffin tins. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.



These muffins are very moist, so they are best consumed within a few days. Great for breakfast or as a snack.




Each muffin has about 150 calories, 3.6g fat, 5g fiber, and 4g protein.


*I wanted to avoid the added sugar and oil, but I decided both of those ingredients were needed.

Pistachio & White Chocolate Chunkies

These may be one of the most unique cookies I have ever tasted. This cookie recipe is definitely a keeper. 

Let me back up and explain why I chose to make these cookies. My beloved boyfriend Chris, is an extremely picky eater. I'm talking almost nothing but fatty deep fried fast food passes his lips. He also loves white chocolate. The other day he asked me why white chocolate chip cookies almost always contained macadamia nuts? Apparently, he's not a fan of the buttery Hawaiian nut. I said something about how the flavors work really well together. But it got me thinking about his favorite nut, pistachios. Surely, I could combine white chocolate and pistachios into a divine cookie....

While I wish I could take credit for these delicious, unique cookies, this is not my recipe. I came upon this recipe while browsing for ideas. I had every intention of creating my own cookie but I love Nigella Lawson, so when I came upon her cookies my search ended. 

I renamed the cookies because mine came out looking chunky. FYI, this recipe uses the metric system. If you don't have a food scale, click here. Note, the directions differ from the ones I posted here. 

 Pistachio & White Chocolate Chunkies

100g butter, softened

125g sugar

100g light brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

150g  flour

1 tsp baking soda 

125g white chocolate chips

250g raw unsalted pistachios

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place 100g of the raw pistachios into a food processor with the sugar and pulse until you have a fine meal.

Cream the butter and brown sugar till soft and fluffy, then add the sugar/pistachio meal and beat well. Add the vanilla and egg and beat till combined, then beat in the flour. Once the dough is smooth and thick, add the remaining chopped pistachios and white chocolate and mix to combine.

Using a cookie scoop or spoon, drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the tray for 10 minutes, then remove the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling down. 

Strawberry Shortcake

This is my mom's all time favorite cake. It is the cake she always requests I make. I especially like making this cake for Mother's day. 

What I love most about the cake, is that it's very simple and quick to make. I also love the lightness of the cake combined with the sweet strawberries and cool whip. It's a light dessert that is perfect for the warmer months.

This recipe makes a beautiful 8 inch cake.

Strawberry Shortcake

1 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp fine salt

4 tbsp (1/2 stick) melted butter

1 large egg, beaten

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp pure vanilla

1 pint strawberries, sliced

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp vanilla

cool whip or whip cream

Preheat oven to 375*.

Butter and flour an 8 inch round cake pan.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

Gently add the melted butter, egg, milk and vanilla.

Beat ingredients together until the batter is smooth

Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for 25 minutes.

While the cake is baking, add the sliced strawberries to a bowl.

Combine with sugar and vanilla.

Set the bowl aside to let the strawberries release their juices.

Once the cake is completely cooled, cut it in half horizontally.

Spread half of the strawberries on the bottom layer of cake.

Layer cool whip or whip cream on top of the strawberries.

Add the rest of the strawberries on top.

Top with the other piece of cake.

Garnish with additional strawberries and whip cream if desired.

Pati's Whole Grain Bread

I first tried this bread a month ago at my aunt's house in Madison. This bread is perfect as a slightly sweet wholesome snack. The recipe is healthy and super easy. 

• 
  
• Pati's Whole Grain Bread
  
• 
  
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
  
• 1 cup wheat germ
  
• 1 cup oat bran
  
• 1 cup brown sugar
  
• 2 tbsp baking powder
  
• 1.5 cups milk
  
• 0.5 cup water
  
• 1 tbsp oil
  
• Optional Mix-ins/Toppings: raisins, walnuts, flax seeds, sesame seeds, cranberries, etc
  

Combine all the ingredients and pour into a loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes.

I pretty much followed this recipe except for a few things. I only had about 2/3 cup of oat bran left. Also, I used raw sugar, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and walnut oil. I mixed-in a handful of raisins and sprinkled the top with whole flax seeds.

Based on my modified recipe, I calculated that 1/8 serving has about 330 calories, 6.5 grams of fiber and 8 grams of protein! It is a bit high in calories for a snack but I think it would be great for breakfast. I must say that with all of the fiber and protein, this is definately satsifying. I think next time I will turn the batter into muffins for an easy-to-go snack/breakfast. It does contain a lot of sugar but I don't think it overpowers the bread. It gives it just the right amount of sweetness. However, I want to experiment with variations of this bread. I might try cutting back on the amount of sugar to shave off extra calories.

Dark Chocolate & Peanut Dreams Cookies

Dark Chocolate Dreams: peanut butter blended with dark chocolate.

Inspired by a jar of Peanut Butter & Co.'s Dark Chocolate Dreams, I attempted to bake a flourless peanut butter cookie. The recipe is incredibly easy and comes together fast.

Because of the added sugar and vanilla already in the chocolate peanut butter, you don't need to add a lot of extra sugar. The salty peanuts add a nice crunch and saltiness. While I don't think this recipe is perfect and needs a bit of playing around with, I have to admit the cookies are addicting. If you make these, let me know what you think!

Dark Chocolate & Peanut Dreams Cookies

1/2 c Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter

1/2 c all-natural crunchy peanut butter

1/4 c sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 c salted peanuts, coarsely ground

Cream together the chocolate pb and crunchy pb with the sugar.

Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.

Stir in the coarsely ground peanuts.

Drop tablespoons of the dough onto a cookie sheet.

Bake at 350* for 12-15 minutes.

Makes about 12 cookies.

These cookies taste best accompanied by a cold glass of your favorite milk.