~Sonoma Chicken Salad~

The other day I had a super tasty chicken salad from Whole Food's buffet/prepared foods-I LOVE more than anything curried chicken or turkey salads, but this time I decided to try something different.  The poppyseeds caught my eye on this particular one...It was their Sonoma Chicken Salad, and it was sooo tasty.  This salad is great if you want a mild chicken salad to top spinach leaves or roll up in a wrap.  I tweaked the full-fat mayo recipe to a much lighter alternative that uses plain yogurt...I also added fresh garden lavender for a fun twist.  If you prefer a creamier, mayo-like salad, use 1/2 c plain yogurt & 1/2 c  low fat mayo.
*To save time, simply buy a cooked rotisserie chicken, remove skin, and chunk.

Sonoma Chicken Salad

INGREDIENTS

1 c plain yogurt

4 tsp apple cider vinegar

5 tsp honey

2 tsp poppy seeds

salt and pepper

2 lbs chicken breast, cooked and chunked

3/4 cup pecan pices, toasted

1 c chopped red apple

2 c red grapes

3 stalks celery, chopped

DIRECTIONS

In a medium bowl, combine first 5 ingredients and mix well.  In a separate bowl, combine the last 5 ingredients and stir together.  Slowly pour yogurt mixture on top of chicken mixture and stir until just mixed. 

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This chicken salad is great on top of a bed of spinach, rolled in a gluten free wrap, or made into a sandwich.  Enjoy!!

De-lish Banana "Ice Cream"

I don't know about you, but I have absolutely NO patience when it comes to waiting on ice cream to freeze, food to cook or bake, water to boil, etc.  If you have this problem as well, you're in luck! I was so eager to try this recipe when I saw it, although a bit apprehensive.  No worries-it turned out better than I expected, and has become a de-lish go-to for a cool snack & dessert on these hot summer days!  This recipe can be tweaked to make a variety of flavors-Peanut butter, nutella, banana nut, chocolate peanut butter, chocolate, chocolate chip, cinnamon, cappuccino crunch & coconut...the list never ends!   The more ripe the bananas, the better.   This is a great way to use up overripe bananas...keep your freezer stocked with baggies of bananas so they'll be ready to go when you're craving some ice cream;-) 
Below is my favorite version with walnuts, coffee and cinnamon.   For added sweetness, drizzle honey over walnuts before toasting-Enjoy!

Banana Walnut

"Ice Cream"

INGREDIENTS

2 bananas, frozen and cut in slices

2-4 T walnuts, toasted and chopped

Dash of cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

*Prior to making ice cream: Slice bananas in small circles & place in a baggie. Freeze.

Using a food processor, (or blender-if using blender, you may need to add a splash of milk to help it blend better) add bananas and cinnamon.  Pulse until a smooth cream is formed.  Fold in nuts, and whatever other toppings desired.  Enjoy!!!

(If wanting a CHOCOLATE version, add 1 T cocoa powder and pulse in with processor!)

The most important part is to eat this ice cream right after making it...OR freeze, and when ready to indulge, heat in microwave for ~30 seconds to slightly soften. 

Variations: Simply add...
-Peanut butter- 1 T
-Nutella - 1 T
-Chocolate peanut butter- 2 tsp cocoa powder, 1-2 tsp peanut butter
-Chocolate- 2 T cocoa powder
-Chocolate chunk- 1-2 T chocolate chunks
-Cinnamon-1/2 tsp cinnamon
-Cappuccino crunch-1 tsp instant coffee
-Coconut- 1 T toasted coconut
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This recipe has less than a gram of fat (with just bananas), and has no added sugar (crazy when comparing to full-fat ice cream!).  The natural sugars in the bananas sweeten this treat nicely without having to add loads of extra sugar. 

*Gluten and Dairy Free
inspired by thekitchn.com

A variety of Parsnip & Sweet Potato Fries!

Yes...another sweet potato recipe! You can do so much with sweet potatoes in baking and cooking, but I would definitely say this is the simplest recipe (and my favorite side) of them all.  Adults and kids love this healthier, baked (not fried!) version, which can be made sweet or savory.  Experiment with different spices such as garlic, thyme, or simply salt and pepper fries!  If you accidentally bake these fries a bit longer, you'll simply end up with sweet potato chips!
Note: Slice in whatever shape desired...medallions are the quickest method...feel free to cut into fry-like shapes as well!

Cumin Sweet Potato Medallions

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed

1 T olive oil

1 tsp ground cumin

Coarse salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Slice sweet potatoes into thin circles. Place potatoes, oil, cumin, salt and pepper in a large Ziploc baggie. Shake until potatoes are coated well. Lay circles on pan (1 layer). Roast, turning potatoes halfway through with a metal spatulas, until fork-tender and browned, about 20-30 minutes.

Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sweet potatoes

1 tsp honey

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 T olive oil

1/2 tsp cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Slice sweet potatoes into thin wedges. Place potatoes, honey, salt, oil and cinnamon in a large Ziploc baggie. Shake until potatoes are coated well. Lay wedges on pan (1 layer). Roast, turning potatoes halfway through with a metal spatulas, until fork-tender and browned, about 20-30 minutes.

Spicy Fries

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sweet potatoes, sliced like french fries

1 T olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp curry

1/2 tsp hot sauce of choice

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425. Spray large baking sheet. Combine all ingredients besides potatoes in large Ziploc baggies. Mix ingredients well. Add potatoes, shake until coated. Spread on baking sheet. Bake for ~20 minutes, or until tender.

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This weekend, I experimented with new baked fries-One of my favorite outings in the summer is to hit up various farmer's markets throughout the week! This week the markets had loads of root veggies such as turnips, parsnips and beets.  I picked up a variety and decided to create this new spin on sweet potato fries!  

Parsnip & Turnip Fries

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs parsnips or turnips (or both)

2 T olive oil

Coarse salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 450.  Trip tops and bottoms of the veggies.  Slice in half crosswise to separate thick and narrow parts. Halve or quarter thick parts lengthwise to make uniform pieces.

In a large baggie, toss veggies with oil, salt and pepper.  Spread in a single layer on pan.  Roast, flipping veggies half way through, until tender and golden brown, 25-30 minutes.

Recipe from Everyday Food.

Pictures taken from foodfit.com and simplyrecipes.com

Pepper Steak

 Below is a pretty standard pepper steak recipe...I'm not a huge fan of steak, but this recipe is always so good, and a quick meal to put together at the last minute...and I just realized I have no steak recipes posted!  Round or loin steak are great cuts to implement into recipes to cut down on the fat content.  I doubled the sauce from the original recipe, which ended with a nice ratio of meat to sauce to rice.   Enjoy!!!

Pepper Steak

INGREDIENTS

1 lb beef tip round steak, cut into thin strips

2 T cornstarch

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 cup low-sodium gluten free soy sauce (tamari)

2 T canola oil

3 medium green & red bell peppers, cut into thin strips

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup water

1 can stewed tomatoes

4 c cooked brown rice

DIRECTIONS

Slice beef into thin slices.  In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and ginger; add soy sauce and stir. Pour soy sauce mixture over beef and stir. Heat oil in pan over medium high heat.  Add beef to pan and stir fry until brown; remove from pan.  Reduce heat and add peppers, onion, garlic, and water to pan.  Cook 4-5 mins.  Stir in meat and tomatoes, heat thoroughly.  Serve over rice.

(Picture taken from pinterest)

Yields: 4 servings

Cooking Time: 10 mins



Cake Mix Banana Cake!

Have overripe bananas? Any baked good involving bananas is sure to please!  I tried this extra moist banana cake recipe last week when I needed a dessert for a dinner party.  I had overripe bananas, and a random gluten free cake mix...Cakemixdoctor.com helped me out with this amazing, super-addicting recipe.  This cake is great for a quick bar to take to a picnic, bbq, dessert party, etc.  If you want to dress it up a bit, you can add a cream cheese frosting. (Although I was impressed with no frosting, as it is very sweet and full of banana flavor!) Enjoy this quick treat!

Note: I simply substituted a gluten free cake mix for a regular mix in this recipe to make it GF; therefore, it can be made with any regular or gluten free cake mix.  The mix I used (and loved) for this recipe was by the company Namaste.  
Be sure to note how many ounces are in your cake mix.  For ex, if using Namaste mix, removed 1 cup of the dry mix before using as there are 26 ounces in the mix. (Any cake mix brand should work great!)

Cake Mix Banana Cake!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 package (18 1/4 ounces) plain white or yellow cake mix (Gluten free or regular)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 ripe medium-size bananas, mashed (About 1 cup)
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup toasted, chopped walnuts, optional

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9x13 in baking pan.
2. Place cake mix, brown sugar and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add mashed bananas, 1 cup water, oil, & eggs. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed 1 minute. Stop mixer and scrape down side of bowl with rubber spatula. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed until well blended, scraping side again if needed.  Gently stir in walnuts if desired. Pour into prepared pan, and place on center rack of oven.
3. Bake until top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 40-50 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool on a wire rack. (cake will seem very moist...I ended up baking mine about 46 minutes at altitude) Sprinkle top with powdered sugar, if desired.

This cake is gluten free and dairy free (if using Namaste mix)!

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A little "pinteresting" in the crafts category aside of baking & cooking...A table runner I made with inspiration from a burlap runner I came across on the one and only, Pinterest;-)  Someday I hope to actually read patterns and share them with readers-for now, no patterns and solely pictures + experimentation!

Mustard Lime Grilled Chicken

This marinade recipe comes from elanaspantry.com and makes chicken so flavorful and tender! The original recipe calls to be baked... Instead, I grilled the chicken (grilled for me is George Foreman for now;-) and it turned out great with a crispy coating.  I marinated my chicken for 1.5 days so it would be sure to soak up all the flavor.

 Mustard Lime Grilled Chicken

INGREDIENTS

1 lb skinless boneless chicken breast

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped (or 1-2 tsp dried)

1/4 cup dijon mustard

1 T olive oil

1 T chili powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In a food processor, combine lime juice, cilantro, mustard, olive oil, chili, salt and pepper. Pulse until all ingredients are pureed together.

2.  Place chicken breasts in a 9x13 baking dish. 

3.  Pour marinade over chicken, cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours, up to 1.5 days.

4.  Place on grill or George Foreman until chicken temps out at 165 degrees.

Enjoy!!!