While you’ll no doubt consume a sufficient number of calories [...]]]> As I’m sure you’ve heard, tomorrow’s Thanksgiving and, if you’re like most of us, you will be engaging in a gluttonous turkey fest, which will then be followed by seventeen pieces of pie, maybe some football and a long nap.  It will be super healthy.

While you’ll no doubt consume a sufficient number of calories to last you through the holiday season, you should probably have a little breakfast in the morning.  It is the most important meal of the day, after all.  I would suggest you keep it light, but that’s just me. 

Recently, I made these Vegan Whole Grain Sweet Potato Muffins, and I think they would make the perfect Thanksgiving breakfast item.  They were adapted from Mark Bittman’s Sweet Potato Muffin Recipe that was featured in the November issue of Runner’s World.  I decided to make them vegan, because I’m just crazy like that and enjoy the challenge.  If I were to make them again, I might substitute some of the whole wheat flour for some white flour.  I also made them a little lower fat by using apple sauce in place of the oil.

Bittman also suggests trying banana nut or pumpkin coconut variations if you’re not into sweet potatoes.  I think the pumpkin coconut option sounds just divine, and would be great if you feel that the seventeen pieces of pumpkin pie you’ll be eating later just aren’t going to fulfill your pumpkin needs!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

3/4 cup sugar

2 tsps. baking powder

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup Earth Balance buttery spread

1/4 cup apple sauce

1 cup mashed sweet potato

3 tbsps. water mixed with 2 1/2 tbsps. flax

1/2 cup almond milk

Heat oven to 375° F. Grease 12 muffin cups or add paper liners.

In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, and salt.

In a  separate bowl, mix earth balance, apple sauce, sweet potato, flax/water mixture, and almond milk.

Fold wet mixture into the dry; and stir until just combined. Batter should be pretty thick.

Fill muffin cups three-quarters full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Now, how was everyone’s Tuesday, July 5th?  ::Groans::  That’s what I thought… it’s going to be a long 4 day week!

I know what you’re thinking ‘ The time of year that you just totally neglect your blog?’  No.  And yes , because it’s that time of year that our weekends fill up with all sorts of parties and picnics where you’ll be expected to bring some form [...]]]> So it’s that time of year again…

I know what you’re thinking ‘ The time of year that you just totally neglect your blog?’  No.  And yes , because it’s that time of year that our weekends fill up with all sorts of parties and picnics where you’ll be expected to bring some form of baked good.  Yes, you should bring something.  Don’t just show up empty handed – you were raised better than that.   OK, maybe you weren’t, but now you know.  You’re welcome.

Over the last couple of weekends, I’ve had a couple of parties to go to and I have made this recipe for No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars.   It has been a huge hit each time.  The best part, I think, about this recipe is how easy it is.   And even better, you don’t even have to turn on your oven in this heat!

I did make a couple of small changes to the recipe per suggestions from the reviews, so here it is the way I made it.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups quick oats
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter

Directions:

First, grease a 9×9 inch baking dish.  Next  melt butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat and add the brown sugar and vanilla extract.  Mix in oats.  Let cook for a couple of minutes.

Press 1/2 of the oats mixture into the bottom of the baking dish.  Set other 1/2 aside.

Next, melt chocolate chips and peanut butter over low heat, stirring frequently until smooth.

Pour the mixture over the oats in the dish.  (I saved a little  bit to drizzle over the top)

Crumble the remaining oats over the layer of chocolate and press down gently.

Drizzle extra chocolate peanut butter mixture over top if desired.

Refrigerate for a few hours.

Wait until back at room temp to cut into bars.

Really, everyone should try making these for their next party.   They went over really big the two times I’ve made them so far.   Also, despite all the butter, I like to think oats  = healthy.   I  would make a double recipe and keep some for yourself for breakfast.

Then a few days ago, I [...]]]> So I’ve been on a bit of a yogurt kick lately – mostly just plain Greek yogurt that I then like to top with various mix-ins. Sometimes I throw in some nuts or berries, a little honey, vanilla, once in awhile even a little chocolate syrup. It’s all good!

Then a few days ago, I got to thinking… what if I froze my yogurt?  What if I just stuck it in the freezer for awhile?  Would that be like the frozen yogurt you get when you go out?  Could it really be that simple? And then I just forgot about my grand scheme… I’m good like that.

Then, this morning it all came back to me when I came across this article : Kitchen Hack: 3 Easy Steps to Create Healthy Frozen Yogurt .  What a coincidence!  I had to try it right away.

I took my plain Greek yogurt, threw in some honey, vanilla, and a handful of chocolate chips (this was going to be dessert , after all) and stuck it in the freezer for just a couple of hours,  and  that was that.  And it was great!  I don’t know if I’d do the chocolate chips again (they were a little hard and even a bit crunchy with the freezing), but it’s definitely something I’ll be experimenting with in the future.  I think next I’ll try topping it with some mixed berries!

Sorry, no pictures this time!  It was devoured before I could grab my camera!

Remember not that long ago when I was talking about all the gorgeous Spring weekends we were having here in CT?  Well guess what?   Mother Nature must have a severe case of PMS, because all that has stopped and it’s been cool and rainy just about every day these past few weeks [...]]]>

Remember not that long ago when I was talking about all the gorgeous Spring weekends we were having here in CT?  Well guess what?   Mother Nature must have a severe case of PMS, because all that has stopped and it’s been cool and rainy just about every day these past few weeks and it feels a lot more like October than June.

When the weather gets like this, I get a little down and tend to seek comfort in food – usually in a warm bowl of… just about anything.   One of my favorite recipes to make when the weather is getting me down is this Chicken Stew with Onions, Tomatoes, and Dijon by Elise from Simply Recipes.

It’s pretty simple and fairly inexpensive to make, uses ingredients that I know I usually have on hand, and can easily be altered with simple additions or substitutions… You know I almost never completely follow a recipe   Oh, and it’s amaaazing! 

This one’s a keeper that I would highly recommend trying out on those cool rainy days that Mother Nature sometimes throws us.

Enjoy!

I just got back from a picnic slash yardwork extravaganza (minus the yardwork) at my Grandma’s house.  You see, when one is born into my family it’s not just your normal [...]]]> Happy Memorial Day, everyone!  I hope you all spent your weekend eating hot dogs and hamburgers, drinking, seeing parades and participanting in shenanigans.

I just got back from a picnic slash yardwork extravaganza (minus the yardwork) at my Grandma’s house.  You see, when one is born into my family it’s not just your normal deal – it’s something like a sort of indentured service where you get volunteered out of nowhere to do a lot of grunt work on otherwise beautiful weekends.  I would complain (and believe me, I often do), but really it works both ways.  I’ve spent a lot of weekends doing a lot of manual labor and overall BS, but I’ve also had a lot of really cool stuff done for me by family members over  the years.

Anyhow, we were supposed to go over and lay down some mulch, and do some weeding and I think plant some stuff for my grandma today and then have a picnic, but SURPRISE, it just ended up being a picnic.  My uncle had everything all set, so there was really nothing for us to do when we got there.  Good deal   It was a day of beer drinking, snacking, playing with dogs and eating hot dogs – a good day

As I’m now 27 years old and no longer a child, I’m expected to make stuff now when I go to these functions – it’s just polite.   I just had to bake something today, so I chose cookies – can’t go wrong with that.   When I make cookies, I almost always choose some form of oatmeal cookie, because I love the texture that the oatmeal adds… and that way you can trick yourself into believing it’s a heart healthy treat- even if you’re eating a dozen of them… and they have enough butter in them to make Paula Deen blush!

I came across this recipe on Eipcurious and modified it a bit  by making the  cookies about half the size the recipe calls for (I like my cookies on the smaller side) and making twice as many.  Also, the recipe calls for almonds, but I used hazelnuts instead.  This is my slightly modified version:

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 cups packaged finely shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup chopped hazelnuts

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Beat together butter and sugars in a bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add eggs and beat until just blended, then beat in vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Add flour and mix at low speed until just blended. Stir in oats, coconut, chocolate, and chopped hazelnuts.

Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto ungreased baking sheets about 2 inches apart and bake for approximately 10 minutes

Cool cookies on sheets 1 minute and transfer to a wire rack to let cool.

Enjoy!

So from reading this blog, you probably already got the idea that I love food, but you might think that I just go out to eat a lot.  Afterall, I’ve posted a few bar and restaurant reviews, but have never posted about anything that I’ve actually made.  Well folks, I do actually cook on [...]]]>

So from reading this blog, you probably already got the idea that I love food, but you might think that I just go out to eat a lot.  Afterall, I’ve posted a few bar and restaurant reviews, but have never posted about anything that I’ve actually made.  Well folks, I do actually cook on occasion

While we are by no means vegetarians, Kevin and I do tend to eat a lot of vegetarian or vegan meals.  This is a modified version of a recipe I found on my favorite vegetarian recipe source, Post Punk Kitchen

Ingredients
3 Tbsps. Olive Oil
1 C. chopped Onion
1 Bell Pepper, seeded and chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 Tbsp Cumin
2 Medium Sweet Potatoes, diced and peeled
1 can diced tomatoes with chilis (14-16 oz.)
1 can Black bean, drained and rines
1 cup Red Wine
1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 Tbsps. Hot Sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste (optional)

Directions
1) In a large saucepan heat olive oil. Add the onion, green pepper,
and garlic. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables begin to soften, about 10 minutes.

2)Stir in the chili powder  and cumin and cook 1 minute. Add 2 1/2 cups water and sweet potato. Cover and cook until potatoes can be pierced with a sharp knife, about 15 minutes.

3) Add the tomatoes and beans and simmer the stew uncovered over medium-low heat until the potato is very tender, about 8 minutes. To thicken the sauce slightly, mash about a quarter of the beans against the side of the pan.

4) Add red wine and brown sugar, simmer for additonal 10 minutes

5) Stir in Tabasco and salt and pepper (if desired)