I don’t think you need much of an explanation as to why I made this dish from this Pin. The name of the recipe says it all. All ingredients I love combined to deliver a delicious side dish. It’s really good. You should make this tomorrow.
This recipe can be found at boulderlocavore.com
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It is snowing out. And my bananas are already well frozen. Here’s how I do it.
First I go to the store and buy bruised bananas from the discount rack. They are usually $0.50 to $0.75 for 10 t0 12. I peel them all, cut them in half and place them in one layer on a parchment covered baking sheet.
Pop them in the freezer overnight at least and you have frozen bananas. Bag them in freezer bags for up to 6 months. Use them for shakes, smoothies, banana bread, banana ice cream, banana bites and whatever else you like.
I will never buy microwave popcorn again.
A brown paper bag, 1/3 cup of corn kernels…….
a little tape and a couple minutes in the microwave equals
POPCORN!
Add a couple spritzes of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, a little salt and Orville ain’t got nothin on me!
FYI: I get my kernels at the local health food store in the bulk food section. Here’s the original pin.
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I made this soup a while back and am just getting to write about it now. I think I made it during the last big snow storm, when we got 12 inches on the ground.
I feel like any soup is comfort food but this one seems to top the list. The creamy white beans and the garlic and fennel flavor is a nice combination. And really, you can’t go wrong with toasted cheese on slices of baguette. Although I substituted whole wheat bread triangles for a lighter version. Still delicious.
This is the soup you want to make on Sunday morning, so you can eat it Sunday afternoon, and the Monday after that.
Recipe courtesy of My Father’s Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow
Ingredients
Optional additions:
Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the fennel and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the onion and garlic, turn the heat as low as it can go, and cook for 1/2 hour, stirring here and there. A little color is okay, but you really the vegetable to get soft and sweet. Add the chile flakes, oregano, and pepper and cook for a minute. Add the beans and stock, bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, add salt to taste, and let cook on low heat for 1 hour.
For optional ingredient additions:
Stir in the kale leaves and let cook for 7 minutes, or until just cooked. Ladle into four bowls, float two toasts on each bowl and evenly distribute the cheese. Put the bowls under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly, less than a minute. Serve.
Riley saw a commercial for chocolate dipped strawberries and wanted them, right then and there. That didn’t happen. But how long could I deny her especially since she kept bringing it up. So we made some chocolate dipped strawberries and she asked me to post it on my site. How sweet is this kid?
She looks grumpy but I think she’s just concentrating, real……hard. Here’s what you need:
Strawberries and chocolate chips (semi-sweet, dark, milk or white chocolate, your preference). Wash and dry your strawberries. Put chocolate chips in glass bowl and microwave for 45 seconds, stir, microwave for 25 seconds more stirring until melted. Nuke again if needed but don’t over cook, just keep stirring till there are no lumps left. Then……..
Dip ‘em in! See even a 5-year-old can do it. No excuses. If you can’t make that Red Velvet cake from the previous post you can at least dip some strawberries for your honey.
Keep on dippin and lay them on a parchment paper covered plate or baking sheet. If you want to get fancy you can swirl a different flavor melted chocolate over the strawberries while on the plate. My white chocolate burned so we didn’t do the swirls. If you really want to impress your Valentine, put the dipped strawberries in mini cupcake papers and in a nice tin or box. Instant Valentine gift.
Put them in the fridge and let the chocolate harden.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Since entering this weight loss challenge I have tried to increase my protein intake. So I try to get in as much as I can throughout the day and chicken is about the easiest source of protein to prepare for dinner. But I’m getting bored with my recipes so I found this one that I could easily tweek with the ingredients I had on hand. Originally honey lime chicken, I substituted lemons because that’s what I had. Instead of an outdoor grill I used my George Forman which comes in handy during the winter months and makes cooking low-fat meals possible. I served the chicken, sliced over a quinoa salad that I kinda threw together using whatever was in the fridge. The chicken was very moist and I used the leftovers for a wrap the next day. I think this marinade could also be nice on a white fish like tilapia and grilled the same way or sautéed in a pan with a little bit of olive oil. Here’s the original pin and here’s the recipe:
PS: this is a great weeknight meal for the family.
Recipe courtesy of unsophisticook.com
Yield: 4 chicken breasts
Instructions:
Note: If you are cooking on a George Forman grill, preheat to 425 and cook for about the same time, until cooked through.
Ingredients
Directions
Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in saute pan. Add onion, peppers and garlic and cook on medium heat till soft, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile using a whisk, mix together soy sauce, lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl. Set aside. Add cooked quinoa to onion/pepper mix and heat till warm. Add edamame and soy sauce/lemon mix. Cook till heated through. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.
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I’ve been doing this Pinterest Challenge now for one month and I’m finding a trend here.
I write about food, a lot. And its funny too because at the same time I’m doing this Challenge at the gym and yet I can’t stop obsessing about food. Making food. Eating food. Making more food and eating it. But I will say this; a lot of the recipes I have posted the last month are good, healthy recipes. So I can’t be too hard on myself. Here’s another delicious and low-fat recipe for a satisfying peanut butter dip made with greek yogurt.
I’ve been eyeing this one up for a while. I only ever had plain Greek yogurt in the fridge so I finally picked up some Vanilla, but honestly, I think you could just add a little extract to the plain and you’d be alright.
I also think you could lose the honey and subtract a few extra calories. The website this recipe originates, fitsugar.com, is right on with the love of peanut butter. But the calorie count can be discouraging. I love snacking on it straight out of the jar. Not sure if I’ve posted this before but I have long professed my love for Trader Joe’s Natural Unsalted Creamy Peanut Butter. I buy several jars when I’m there and would have an image for you if I wasn’t out of it. I’ll post one from my next visit. It’s creamy and remains that way, having to be stirred only once when first opened. So good.
This time we used Jif. Almost as good but another favorite in our house. We sliced up a couple of apples and served them on the side. Other dipping ideas include banana slices, celery sticks, pretzels, Cheez-its, graham crackers, just to name a few. My kids really liked it and enjoyed helping me mix it all together.
It’s a great snack for the kids after school and easy to assemble. The estimated calorie count is below the recipe and you’ll find its way less than a spoonful of peanut butter. And just about as satisfying. Here’s the original pin and the recipe:
Recipe courtesy of fitsugar.com
Ingredients and Directions (cause it’s that simple)
Makes four, two-tbsp. servings. Each serving contains 66 calories, 3.75 grams of fat, .5 grams of saturated fat, .75 grams of fiber, and 5.5 grams of protein.
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You can’t eat just one. But you’ll have to, because it takes several nukings to get a handful. Seriously. Before I could get the next batch in the microwave, the first batch was gone. I would like to say it is worth the effort but it’s so not. It’s a great idea if you are practicing some serious portion control. They are very tasty. And its nice to control the amount of salt and olive oil used as a opposed to a store-bought bag. But if you’re thinking about making these for a party or a playdate. Start now and think again. I’m all for making your own snacks and not relying on the ease of processed foods. But this is not a quick snack to make. Here’s the original pin and here’s the recipe which is made with potato chips:
Ingredients
1 or more potatoes or other root vegetable, scrubbed clean
Salt and other seasonings, optional
Olive oil, optional
1. Cut the potato in half. Slice one half on a mandoline, aiming for slices 1/8 to 1/16-inch thick. Immediately put the slices in cold water. Repeat with the other half of the potato and any other potatoes you are preparing.
2. Rinse the slices in cold water until the water stays clear. If you have time, let them soak for a few extra minutes before rinsing.
3. Dry the slices between two clean dish cloths or spin them in a salad spinner.
4. Arrange as many slices as will fit in a single layer on a dinner plate lines with a few paper towels. Make sure the slices do not touch or else they stick together. If desired, sprinkle with salt or other spices. For richer-tasting chips, brush the slices with olive oil first.
5. Microwave the slices at 100% power for 3 minutes. Flip them over and microwave at 50% power for another 3 minutes. Remove any chips that are starting to crisp and brown. Continue cooking the remaining chips at 50% power in 1 minute intervals until they are all crispy and golden.
6. Transfer cooked chips to a bowl and repeat microwaving with the remaining slices of potato.
Chips will stay crispy for a few days if kept in an airtight container or zip-lock bag. You can also prepare the raw slices ahead of time, store them in cold water in the refrigerator, and bake them off as you want them.
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I don’t usually eat grapefruit. I’ll juice it once in a while but I won’t slice one in half and dig in. But if someone tells me to smother it in sugar and stick it under the broiler, then I’ll go out and buy 6 of them. Which is what I did here. 6 for $1.99 to be exact. I tried the recipe out with a substitution since I can’t use brown sugar right now (diet). I used about 1 tablespoon of agave syrup instead. I’m sure the results were not as yummy as they could have been but they were still yummy nonetheless. The grapefruit was very juicy and the carmelized, warm syrup was a delicious contrast to the bitter grapefruit. Nice for breakfast. Here’s the original pin and here’s the recipe: Continue reading
I’ll admit I made these before at Christmas time but they didn’t turn out that great. Some were crunchy, some were soft. It was a weird combination of textures that I didn’t really like. So I’m making them again from the original pin I used before. Only this time, I rinsed and drained the chickpeas for a several hours so that they would dry out a bit before I roasted them. And that seemed to do the trick. Although, as you can see in the photo, some of them burned. Not a terrible thing. They still taste yummy. So take heed when you make these and keep an eye on them while they roast. Continue reading
