What's for dinner?

I find when I am organized and prep for the week I am more successful eating healthy.  This week I am doing a copy cat Chipotle bowls. I LOVE Mexican food and it is really easy to prep and store for the week. But make it your own!! Make things that you love and enjoy. (ok you can't put chocolate bars in it) but you know what I mean. Yesterday I went shopping and picked up the things I needed. I would usually Roast of Chicken or two on Sundays so I would have one for dinner and one for the week but I didn't do it. So I picked up a Rotisserie Chicken instead. I took off all the skin, then pulled off all the meat and put it in a container for storage. I saved the skin and bones and made bone broth so I can make soup later this week. Yummy. Here is a link for a recipe for crock pot bone broth. http://www.theyummylife.com/Slow_Cooker_Chicken_Broth

Look how beautiful it is...
I steamed some rice, chopped up some romaine lettuce, grilled some organic frozen corn, chopped up bell peppers, I wanted to add a avocado but it wasn't ripe yet. I thinned out some sour cream with almond milk and added some taco seasoning to it. And made some pico de gallo salsa.

 I made black rice because that is what I had on hand. It looks purple though.  Brown rice is my favorite...You can also use quinoa. Here is a link to one of my favorite rice recipes I love to use in my bowls.
http://www.serenabakessimplyfromscratch.com/2015/08/cilantro-lime-rice.html

 I love grilled corn it adds such a great flavor...

 Ingredients

4 medium tomatoes seeded and diced

1 medium red onion diced

1 jalapeno peppers, membrane, and seeds removed then diced finely

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 a bunch cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

juice of 1 lime and yest.

Chop

Directions

Put all the ingredients into a bowl or mason jar and refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.

 I also added black beans. Any beans that you like would be yummy! Oh and a little bit of sharp cheddar :) 

 

For my kids I made quesadillas and chips and salsa. Today they will have taco's and add whatever topping they want. So easy and yummy and I love having it more than one night....

Rewarding Children for good behavior....

Ok you can call it bribing if you want but for my little ones it seems to work best when they have something to look forward to.  Whether it is a date night with Jeff or Me, a fun family outing or a special treat, it works so much better than to punish them.

Here are a couple of my favorite treats I like to buy for them and feel good about them eating them.

I love this brand and my kids love all the flavors.

But there are times we stick with our traditions and just make what I have been making for years.  One of my children's favorite things to do is make cookies.  One our traditions is to make sugar cookies for the holidays.  I have been making these cookies for the last 30 years.  I got the recipe from my roommate and best friend at the time Tracie Derrick. I works every time and they are delicious cookies.  Soft and buttery!!!

I even took some to my Seminary kids for Valentines Day.. There is something about cutting out and decorating these yummy cookies that my kids just can't get enough of.

Here is the Recipe

Cutout Sugar Cookies

1//2 C butter

1 C sugar

1 egg

3 C flour

3/4 t salt

3 t baking powder

1/2 C milk

1 t vanilla

Directions:

Thoroughly cream butter, sugar and eggs. Beat well.  Add dry ingredients alternating with milk and vanilla, mix thoroughly.  Roll 1/8 thick on floured surface.  Cut with cookie cutters. Bake on greased cookie sheet 350 degrees for about 10 min. 

One of their other favorite treats is Rice Crispy treats. I mean who doesn't love them? Every time I make them I make the healthy version because they still taste great and my kids don't care. They just think they are delicious!!!

 I use all natural vanilla marshmellows

 We make all different flavors but this is one of my kids favorite chocolate!!

Don't they look scrumptious!!! Ooey gooey and crispy!!!

So now let's move on to some dinners. It has been a busy week so I wanted to do a few easy things. 

My husband wanted Sushi for his Valentines Dinner and I was happy to make it.  I think Sushi or California rolls is one of the easiest things to make and it doesn't cost much either.  It is so expensive to buy and you can make lots for pennies. I use cooked garlic shrimp, brown rice, avocados cream cheese, cucumber, carrots, and sweet bell peppers and wrapped them in Nori seaweed . But you can put whatever your family likes. 

 Look how much it makes... We had it for two nights!! 

 My family LOVES low mien noodles I always make it when we have Sushi. This is the sauce I use and add Fettuchini noodles (either whole wheat, Quinoa, or chickpea) then add whatever vegetables I have on hand. 

Sesame oil 1/4 cup oyster sauce 2 Tbsp. soy sauce (or to taste) 1 Tbsp. coconut oil 1 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger 3 cloves garlic, minced

Here are some recipes for dipping sauce that I like and use.

http://culinaryginger.com/trio-of-asian-dipping-sauces/

I also like to make a Sriracha Dipping Sauce to put on top of the Sushi.

1 cup mayo
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
4 tablespoons sriracha (a little more if you like it spicier)

Then I have pickled ginger and wasabi on the side.  There you have it!!! It taste so much better than take out or store bought. 

I have to confess I am addicted to cooking shows and this week I was watching one of them while I was painting a dresser and they made this side dish.  It looked so delicious I had to try it.  One of my busy days I stopped at the store to pick up the ingredients and also picked up a rotisserie chicken.  I made the side dish with the chicken and it was a big hit.  I am always looking for yummy side dishes that my family will love. 

Roasted Asparagus with Prosciutto, pine nuts and Parmesan

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/marcela-valladolid/roasted-asparagus-with-prosciutto-pine-nuts-and-shaved-parmesan

 This is before I roasted it.

All done!! Doesn't it look good.  I LOVE Asparagus...

So go out there and try something new your family will love it.

KEEP COOKING :)  

Sweets Glorious Sweets!!!

Who doesn't like sweets???? But I don't like to give them to my family if they are full of sugar and packed full of preservatives...... So what do you do?? Well for me I love to look up healthy recipes and try them out.. So here are some ones I tried and really like. 

The first one is Brownies!! Who doesn't like brownies?  Ooey gooey chocolate goodness. I have a lot of picky eaters in this house and the worst ones are Coltin my 15 year old son and my mother. So it has to pass their taste test.....

This one is made with black beans and it's delicious!!! I didn't tell anyone what is was made of at first until they tried it.  Everyone loved it.  SHHHH don't tell the kids it's full of protein and good stuff they will never know..

 Don't they look scrumptious!!! 

Black Bean Fudge Brownies 

Serves: 16 brownies

 Ingredients 

15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

 3 eggs 

3 Tbsp oil (coconut)

 1 tsp vanilla

 ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

 ⅔ cup coconut sugar

 ½ tsp baking powder 

¼ tsp salt

 ½ cup semi­sweet chocolate chips or good quality dark chocolate bar chopped

Instructions 1. Puree black beans in food processor or blender (or mash with a fork). 2. Mix black beans, eggs, oil, and vanilla. 3. In a separate bowl mix cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, salt. 

4. Mix wets and dries, then stir in chocolate chips. 5. Pour into a greased 8x8 or 9x9 pan and bake about 30 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees F (176 C), until center is no longer gooey (test with a toothpick or knife). Time will be shorter for a larger pan size. 6. Allow to cool slightly before cutting. Nutrition Information Serving size: 1 brownie Calories: 146 Fat: 6g Carbohydrates: 21g Sodium: 47mg Fiber: 1.8g Protein: 4g

The next one is Salted Dark Chocolate Peanut Bark

What can I say is that the only thing I don't like about this recipe is that it needs to be doubled. :) I love anything that is sweet and salty....I also love dark chocolate!! It has everything I need in a sweet treat... Sometimes you just need a little sweet treat after a meal and this will hit the spot... It has it all!

The flaked salt makes it so yummy.  I thought maybe I put too much on but I wished I would of put a little more. The salt with the chocolate is so delicious....I'm keeping this one just for me :)
Here is the Recipe
Salted Dark Chocolate Peanut Bark
Ingredients
4 ounces dark/bittersweet chocolate chopped
1 Cup roasted unsalted peanuts
flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Melt chocolate in a double boiler.  Alternatively place, chocolate in a bowl that fits inside a saucepan.  Place just enough water in saucepan to barely touch bottom of bowl. Bring to a boil,then reduce heat and place bowl of chocolate on top of saucepan and stir until melted. Remove chocolate from heat and stir in peanuts.  Spread chocolate peanut mixture on plastic lined baking sheet.  Sprinkle with a little flaky sea salt. Place in refrigerator until chocolate is hardened.  Break into pieces and store in mason jars or airtight container. Enjoy!!

To keep with the sweet and salty theme I made some Clean Caramel Corn.  Our family LOVES popcorn.  We eat it all the time....Almost everyday either for a snack in the kids lunch or at night and especially when we watch a movie.  So I am always trying new healthy recipes. This one is a keeper!!

Clean Caramel Corn {healthy, vegan, delicious!}

No refined sugars required for this delicious recipe! Just need a little maple syrup and coconut oil! You will be amazed at how amazing this caramel corn is.

YIELD: 8 CUPS POPPED, APPROXIMATELY

 

PREP TIME: 30 MINUTES

 

COOK TIME: 8 MINUTES

 

TOTAL TIME: 38 MINUTES

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons coconut oil, divided
• 1/2 cup popcorn kernels
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place 1 tablespoon coconut oil into deep pot or pan with tight fitting lid and melt over medium high heat. Add in popcorn kernels and cover. Shake pan back and forth every 20 seconds or so to heat kernels evenly. After about 2 minutes, kernels should start to pop. Once popping slows, remove popcorn from heat and pour into large bowl.
2. In a small saucepan, place remaining coconut oil with maple syrup and salt. Boil 2 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Drizzle over popcorn and toss to coat evenly. Spread out onto some parchment paper to cool 30 minutes or so. Serve.

Try it and let me know what you think.

Look at these Happy faces.  They just ate a cupcake and loved every bite....SHHHHHH they don't know that it was healthy and that yummy chocolate frosting was made with avocados.  YES that is what I said AVOCADOS... I am not a big cake person and don't like frosting because I think it is too sweet but this one is Delicious... My avocados should of been a little more ripe to give it a smoother texture but know one seemed to notice.  I also made a raspberry filling for the middle to make it super yummy. 

Coconut Cupcakes

Ingredients:

3/4 C sifted coconut flour

1 t baking powder

1 t salt

6 eggs

3/4 C light agave nectar

1/2 C coconut oil

3 T almond milk

1 T pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350. In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, baking powder, and salt until blended.  Whisk in the eggs, agave nectar, oil, milk and vanilla until completely blended and smooth. It doesn't look like regular batter.

 My pan has had a lot of love through the years....

 Dived the batter equally between lined muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Let coll for 10 minutes on wire rack.

 Remove some of the middle and add filling if you like

Ingredients 2 ripe avocados med/large, peeled and pitted, 2 ½ small avocados 1/2 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder 1/2 cup maple syrup 2 Tbsp. coconut oil (melted coconut oil will give you a silkier texture but un-melted works okay too) 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1 tsp. ground cinnamon optional Instructions 1. Add avocado to a food processor fitted with an S blade and blend until smooth. 2. Add remaining ingredients and blend again until smooth. You may need to stop and scrape the sides with a spatula a couple of times. (Add the maple syrup on top of the cocoa powder to keep the dust down.) 3. Use immediately or store in fridge until ready to use. Frosting should be okay in the fridge for a couple of days.

The cupcakes has a delectable coconut taste and is more on the pound cake side. The frosting is light, creamy and chocolaty. But not too sweet more like a whip cream frosting. I hope you enjoy these recipes and enjoy cooking healthy for your family like I do.