Breakfast Frittata

This is one of my "go to" breakfasts lately.  I make it the night before and reheat it in the mornings for a quick on the go breakfast before I go workout.  I've been getting up a lot lately at 4 am for my Crossfit workouts which sucks in itself.  So I don't want to have to wake up extra early to make breakfast when I don't really want to eat at 4 am.  So I reheat a slice of this and eat it as I'm walking out the door.  I get sad everytime I run out and have to run to the store to immediately make more.  I don't know why I haven't been making this for myself for years!  I do make my own homemade sausage to go in it but you can use store bought sausage too.

Sausage and Vegetable Frittata

4 eggs
4 oz. sausage
1 c. spinach leaves, torn
1/2 tomato, diced
4-5 button mushrooms, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 orange bell pepper, diced
1 tsp. olive oil 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook your sausage in a skillet and remove with slotted spoon and set aside.  In the same saucepan add your diced onions and peppers and sautee until just tender.  Add in your mushrooms and sautee another minute or two. Now throw in your tomatoes and spinach and once stirred to combine dump your whisked eggs over the top and stir just enough to get everything coated and spread the egg out evenly.  Toss the entire skillet in the oven and bake about 20 minutes or until eggs are firm.  Slice, garnish with avocado and enjoy!

Cauliflower "Rice"

Found this recipe recently at Fast Paleo.  Last night was the first time I've tried making cauliflower "rice".  My household isn't big on cauliflower so we don't have it often.  We live in Japan so sticky rice is everywhere and I'm feeling a bit deprived never getting to eat my rice with my meals like everyone else.  That's one thing I miss since starting Paleo is my sticky rice.  So last night I made cauliflower "rice".  It really was pretty good.  It took me a few bites to get over the fact that it wasn't really rice but I ate it with some spicy coconut curry and really liked it.  I think it is something I will probably be making again in the near future.

Cauliflower "rice"

1 head of cauliflower
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp. coconut oil

Remove most of the stalk of the cauliflower and leave them in florets.  Place them into a food processor and pulse until course and rice like.  Add coconut oil to a saute and add in garlic cloves and diced onion and saute until tender.  Dump in "rice" like cauliflower and saute for about 6-10 minutes or until just tender.  Add salt to taste and serve.  

No Oat Oatmeal

So I miss oatmeal.  I use to eat it quite often for breakfast but since switching to Paleo I don't get to eat it anymore since no grains allowed, including no oats.  So when I saw this recipe at 
PaleoPlan.com I knew that I had to try it. I was really shocked at how good it was.  I wasn't expecting it to be so creamy and delicious.  I didn't pulse the nuts to death so there was a nice texture left to them.  The banana made it the perfect sweetness without having to add any extra sweetness at all.  It's a bit high on the calorie side (being about 400 calories a serving and this makes 2 servings worth so if you eat the entire thing you've just eaten about 800 calories!) Though it has nothing but good for you things added into it.  You can really use any nuts you like in this dish, you don't have to use the ones I call for. 

No Oat Oatmeal 

1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pecans
2 tbsp. ground flax seed
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
Dash of nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp. almond butter
1 banana, mashed
3 eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (add more if desired)
1 handful of fresh berries (optional)

Add walnuts, pecans, flax seed and spices to a food processor and pulse mixture to a course grain (make sure to stop before it is ground into a powder). Set aside. On a medium heat stir together eggs and almond milk until the consistency starts to thickens and becomes a loose custard. Using a wooden spoon you will start to notice chunks of "custard" scraping off the bottom of the pan, keep stirring.  It'll thicken pretty quick once this starts to happen.  I like to then switch to a whisk to remove the lumps in the custard then once smooth adding ingredients.  Thoroughly blend the mashed banana and almond butter together and add it to the custard, mixing well. Stir in the course nut mixture. At this point remove from heat and stir until your desired consistency is reached.  Top with berries.  Thin out with almond milk if needed. 

Garlic Roasted Chicken Thighs

I love, love, love garlic.  I love so much garlic in a dish that it seeps out of my pores.  This dish is so ridiculously easy to throw together that I make it once a week and my family adores it.  I like to take the left over roasted garlic from the pan and smear it on top of my chicken like a spread.  Yum!

Garlic Roasted Chicken

4-5 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
8-10 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
Salt & Pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a skillet (I use cast-iron) get your pan on a medium heat.  Throw in the oil and the rough chopped garlic cloves (no need to mince since it'll be cooking in the oven for a long time).  Allow the garlic to cook a few minutes in the oil just to give the oil a nice garlic flavor.  Then with a slotted spoon remove the garlic and set aside but leave the oil.  Salt and pepper your chicken top and bottom generously.  Turn the pan to a medium-high heat and place chicken skin side down in the skillet rotating as necessary to get a nice golden brown on the skin.  Once the skin is nicely browned flipped all chicken over and sprinkle garlic around the pan.  I like to lift up the chicken and make sure the garlic is under, over and around all the chicken.  Place into the oven for about 40-45 minutes or until cooked through.  

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is Chicken Tortilla soup with no tortillas!  This soup is absolutely delicious and is definitely one of my new favorites!  This recipe is from PaleOMG.  My husband doesn't like chunky vegetables so my soup is a smooth soup whereas the original recipe is delightfully chunky.  The avocado mixed in when serving is so ridiculously creamy and amazing but then again I'm avocado obsessed these days and could just spend all day every day eating avocados.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken:

3-4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2.5lbs worth)
1 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil

Soup Base:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 yellow onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 poblano pepper, diced
1 jalapeño, finely diced
1 (4oz) can diced green chiles
1 (14oz) can fire roasted tomatoes
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
32 oz fluid chicken stock (I used low sodium, no sugar added)
juice of 2 limes
chopped cilantro, to garnish
crushed plantain chips, to garnish
sliced avocado, to garnish

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Place chicken on a parchment lined baking sheet. Pour on some olive oil and then sprinkle with cumin, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and salt and pepper.  Bake for 20-30 minutes (depending on the thickness of the chicken breasts). Once your chicken is done baking, use two fork to shred the chicken. While your chicken is baking, get your soup ready. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat then add your minced garlic. Add onions, red bell pepper, jalapeño pepper, and poblano pepper. Mix around to help coat. Once your onions begin to become translucent, pour in your green chiles and diced fire roasted tomatoes, along with the rest of your spices. Mix together. Then add your shredded chicken and chicken stock to the pot. Simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. When your soup has simmered, add in your lime juice and a bit more salt and pepper.
Add your soup to a bowl along with avocado, cilantro, and plantain chips.  YUM!

Homemade Almond Milk

So I'm getting ready to start this super strict Paleo & WOD challenge with my Crossfit group.  I can only buy vanilla and original Almond milk here in Japan and they both are sweetened with sugar or something that is basically sugar.  I needed Almond milk for my morning coffee with no sugar.  So I sweetened it with dates.  You know I've never had a date before until last week.  They just sound awful.  I tell you what I absolutely LOVE them.  I like to stuff them with an almond and eat them but that's another story.  Anyways, this is the Almond milk I make now for my coffee and it's really easy to do.  I found this recipe at Everyday Paleo .  Just know this is a two day process so start the day before you want your milk.  This keeps for 3-5 days in the refrigerator.  Also, homemade almond milk tends to seperate when added to hot beverages like coffee or tea.  To prevent this you need to add it to a pot after you make it and simmer it on a low heat for about 15 minutes then pour into your storage container. 

Almond Milk

1 cup raw almonds

3 cups of water

4 dates

1/2 tsp organic vanilla extract

1 nut milk bag (you can use cheese clothe and a strainer if you can’t find a nut milk bag)

Soak one cup of raw almonds in water for 12-24 hours. 

After 12-24 hours strain the almonds you had soaking and add them into your blender along with 2-3 cups of fresh water (the less water you add the more creamy the almond milk will be), dates, and vanilla extract. Blend for a minute or two. Once it is completely blended and mixed pour your almond milk through the nut milk bag (or cheese clothe and strainer) into a bowl. Squeeze as much of the liquid from the nut milk bag as possible. Once all the milk has drained through the bag you can either toss the remaining almond pulp or lay it on a cookie sheet covered in foil and dry it out in the oven at 175 till it is all dried out and you will have your own homemade almond meal.

Paleo Almond Flour Biscuits

Say what?  Yup, that's right, grain-free biscuits.  These are Paleo friendly biscuits!  I was quite skeptical at first because, well I'm from South Carolina.  This Southern girl can make a rockin' biscuit!  I've  been making biscuits for years.  I thought this would be dense and terrible.  Surprisingly, it was really tasty!  I'd make this again for sure.  It is light and fluffy.  A bit crumbly but I mean come on, it's grain-free!  A definite must try for anyone doing Paleo or steering clear of dairy and/or grains.  

Oh and this is the last post I'm going to put the word Paleo in the title.  I think I've made enough Paleo recipes lately to stop saying it in the title and just label it and mention it here.  Until otherwise noted, I'm a Paleo girl and hope to stay that way. 

The original recipe is from Food Renegade. 

Grain-Free Biscuits
Yield: 4 breakfast sandwiches

1 cup almond flour
4 egg whites
1/3 cup coconut oil
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

In a mixer (or with a fork) combine the coconut oil and almond flour until you have little broken up, pea-sized bits of butter distributed into the flour.  Depending on the temperature, your coconut oil may just melt in and mix without it being pea sized.  Add the egg whites, salt, and baking powder. Mix to combine. If the batter doesn’t seem stiff enough to retain its shape while baking, add more almond flour a little at a time until it does. (Based on the comments below, this step is essential. Different almond flours are more absorbent than others.) The original recipe calls for 1 cup of almond flour so I suggest starting with that.  I used more like 1 1/2 cups when I made the recipe.  Scoop the batter into 4 even portions and place onto a greased or silicone-lined baking sheet. The dough should be scoopable by spoon but not an actual hands on type of dough.  Bake at 350F for about 20-22 minutes, until slightly golden.

(**Note - These biscuits are roughly 280 calories a piece)

Chicken & Kale Soup

I'm trying to get away from bread and grains so am struggling to come up with lunch ideas that are quick, easy and not just a meal replacement shake.  Sometimes I want food, not a shake.  So I've started making big batches of soup and keeping it in the fridge to reheat as needed.  This is one of my current favorites.  It's healthy and absolutely delicious!  I won't lie that I kinda wish I had a big bowl on the table with some sort of crunchy bread to eat with it but thus far I have resisted the urge to bake it.  I make homemade chicken stock with this recipe because I think it makes it that much better.  But you certainly can just skip over the entire chicken stock part and go to the soup making part and just use a store bought rotisserie chicken instead.  I'll tell you my little cheat to make my chicken stock extra super amazing and awesome.  Instead of all water with my chicken and vegetables I add in a good quality pre-made chicken stock.   

Chicken & Kale Soup

1 whole chicken, shredded
2 boxes of (good quality) chicken stock (or recipe below for homemade stock)
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 large bunch of kale, chopped with middle stem removed

Add chicken stock to a large stock pot.  Shred the chicken, chop the vegetables and add it all into the stockpot.  Simmer on a medium-low for about 20-30 minutes or until carrots are nice and tender. 

Homemade Chicken Stock

1 whole chicken
2 bay leaves
6 sprigs thyme
small handful of black peppercorns
1 head garlic, split through the equator
2 tablespoons salt
3 rough chopped whole carrots
2 rough chopped stalks celery
1 rough chopped onion

4 c. (good quality or toss in a bullion cube) chicken stock

4 c. Water  (roughly)

Add everything into a stockpot and simmer on a medium heat for 2-3 hours until chicken falls off the bones and stock tastes awesome.  Make sure your liquid comes to the top of the chicken but doesn't have to cover it completely.  Strain the stock before using.  

Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls

I am soooo in love with these.  My kids beg for them.  My husband even eats them!  I've made these with peanut butter with pure maple syrup and almond butter with honey and I think the almond butter and honey are perfect and absolutely amazing!  They are so healthy but yet feel like a dessert cheat.  This time of year with Christmas fast approaching I always find I need cookies and desserts and these really hit the spot.  Of course, much like a cookie, you can't eat juts one so at almost 100 calories a ball the calories can add up quick but at least it is good for you, not stick to your hips and butt type of calories!

Now the version in the picture is minus the chocolate and I used vanilla protein powder just because the chocolate ones looked soooo unpleasant when it came picture time so you can totally make these vanilla or chocolate whatever you like best!   The original recipe as written below uses 1/4 c. of honey, I however prefer mine with 1/8 c. of honey so it all has to do with how sweet you like them you can add or subtract it to your preference.

Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls   

1/2 c. almond butter
1/4 c. honey
1 scoop chocolate (soy) protein powder (*or vanilla)
1/4 c. ground flax seed
2 tbsp. cocoa (*optional)
1 c. old fashioned rolled oats (dry)
1 tbsp. coconut oil

Makes 18 large balls or 36 bite size balls.  I'm working on the exact calorie count and nutritional information for these but it is roughly 90 calories a tbsp. size ball.




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Not Your Ordinary Recipes

Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake

So that time of year again when every time I go into the kitchen I come out having made something pumpkin.  Even my protein shakes have turned pumpkin these days!!  I have a protein shake almost every single day.  Sometimes it is my lunch replacement meal other times just a post workout snack.  I'm usually a chocolate peanut butter protein shake kinda gal but I was in the mood to try something different today.  Of course you can leave the oats out if you can't handle the texture it gives them but I don't mind it, I enjoy it.  I suggest keeping your pumpkin in the fridge before making this.  I don't add ice to my shakes because I have the worst blender ever so I put my pumpkin in the fridge to keep my shake cold. 

Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake

1 1/2 c. almond milk (original)
1/3 c. pure pumpkin
1/2 c. old fashioned rolled oats (dry)
1 scoop vanilla (soy) protein powder
1 ripe banana
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Add all ingredients into the blender and puree until smooth.  We as smooth as you can get a shake with oats.  The longer it sits the thicker it will get because of the oats so you may have to adjust the amount of almond milk you add to it.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin Banana Bread

So you know how the story goes.  You buy one too many bananas and they are getting a little too ripe to eat so it turns into banana bread time.  Of course, what time isn't a good time for banana bread?  Banana bread is delicious.  Wanna know what is even better than banana bread?  Pumpkin banana bread.  My kids devoured this bread and begged for more.  What felt really good about that is the fact that it was healthy so I didn't mind them having an extra piece.  And of course, do you know how delicious banana bread is with a cup of coffee for breakfast?!  I tweaked this recipe I found here just a bit - Cooking Light.

Pumpkin Banana Bread

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder 
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
2 large eggs
3 large bananas, overripe
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 tbsp. ground cinnamon 



Preheat oven to 350°.  Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and sugar into a mixing bowl and whisk to combine.   Mash the bananas until desired consistency, I like a little bit of chunk left to mine.  Whisk in the pumpkin puree and melted coconut oil.  Add in the eggs one at a time and then the vanilla.  Now add the flour mixture into the pumpkin banana mixture and whisk until just blended but don't over mix.  Pour batter (it will be a thick batter) into a bread pan and bake 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack. 

Protein Packed Banana Nut Oatmeal

Yum!  I just love oatmeal.  This oatmeal is one that I make quite often and it is super filling.  Lots of fiber, lots of protein and lots of flavor.  My son loves this too.

Protein Packed Banana Nut Oatmea

1 c. water
1/2 c. old fashioned rolled oats (dry)
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I use soy)
1/4 c. almond milk (original)
1 ripened banana
1 tbsp. chopped almonds
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Start by cooking your oats in the water according to the directions.  Once the oats are fully cooked add in your protein powder.  It will get really thick really fast.  Then use your  almond milk to thin it out to the consistency you enjoy.  Mash in your banana or chop into chunks, add in the vanilla and top with nuts.  Yum! 

Asian Stuffed Peppers

I've been wanting to do stuffed peppers for a while now but everyone in my house starts complaining as soon as I mention it.  Tonight is my birthday and I can make whatever I want and no one can say a word so I decided to make these peppers.  I'm totally in love with ground turkey with Asian flavors and could eat it all day long so I decided to stuff it with my favorite.  I used baby red bell peppers so I only needed to bake them about 20 minutes until the peppers were really soft and tender.  I imagine using full sized peppers might take a bit longer.  I also opted to not mix my rice into my mixture as I originally planned to do for no reason other than my rice cooker was taking way to long cooking the rice and I didn't feel like waiting on it.  So I served it over brown rice instead.  This was a huge hit with my kids.  My husband of course doesn't care for ground turkey, peppers, onions or brown rice so I didn't expect him to jump up and down over it.  My 2 year old absolutely loved it and ate his entire pepper too before asking for more. 

Filling:
1lb. ground turkey
8 small red bell peppers
1/2 red onion
1/4 c. hoisin sauce
1/3 c. low sodium soy sauce
1/4 c. chili sauce (or any spicy Asian sauce)
1 tsp. olive oil 


Preheat oven to 375.  Chop the onion and 2 of the small bell peppers and add a bit of olive oil to a skillet and saute until just tender. Meanwhile slice the remaining peppers length wise and scoop out inside seeds and flesh to give the meat a place to rest.  Now, add ground turkey to pan with the onions and peppers and cook until not longer pink.  Add in the soy sauce, hoisin sauce and chili sauce and allow to cook a few more minutes.  Now taste to determine if you need salt as I don't add extra because the soy sauce is salty enough.  Place peppers on a non-stick baking sheet (or simply spray baking sheet with pam).  Fill peppers to the top and bake 20 minutes or until tender.  Serve over brown rice.  

Pancake Cups

Peanut Butter Banana Nut Pancake Cups

My kids beg for these almost every morning since the first time I made them.  I originally saw this recipe on pinterest (here - Real Mom Kitchen) and though they don't come out exactly as it says it is a HUGE hit in my house.  The middle sinks in just a bit so it looks like a bowl.  Of course, I modified it to fit what we like a bit better to make it healthier.  I actually love making these because everything goes directly into a blender then poured into a muffin tin so little mess and little clean up.  Plus my kids use almost no syrup this way which I really like.

We've done quite a few variations of this now.  We've done it with peanut butter and bananas.  We've done it with chocolate chips and peanut butter, we've done it with blueberries and lemon zest and we've done it melted jelly or jam over the top as well.  YUM!!!  This makes 24 pancake cups.  If you want just 12, cut the recipe in half.    

Lemon Blueberry Pancake Cups

Peanut Butter Banana Pancake Cups

6 whole eggs
1 c. almond milk
1 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 c. vegan butter melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbsp. honey

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Add your eggs, milk, flour and vanilla into a blender and let it whirl until smooth.  Add in your butter and honey and again let it whirl.  Pour into a muffin tin (well greased) and fill it a little under half way full.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Allow to cool a few minutes then remove from pan and add your toppings of choice.  I like to add a dollop of peanut butter, sliced bananas and chopped nuts to mine.

 

Whole-Grain Pancake Mix

I'm always so jealous of people that can wake up and make a pancake breakfast for their family out of a box of mix.  It seems so quick, so easy and I've never been one to do that.  I do everything from scratch so of course I spend a great deal of time in the kitchen having to prepare things.  I love the idea of making a huge bag of pancake mix and then just adding in your oil, eggs and milk when it is time to whip them up for breakfast.  It saves so much time on my part and is still just as delicious.  I found this recipe at King Arthur Flour.  I didn't add the oil into the mix like the original recipe called for but opted to add that at the same time as the eggs and milk later on and I opted to make them 100% whole grain and not use the all-purpose flour but add extra whole wheat flour and oats instead and it worked just fine that way.  I liked to write on my bag what I need to add so there is no confusion.  1 cup of the pancake mix + 2 tbsp. oil (such as canola) + 1 egg + 1 c. milk.  This bag makes about 7-8 1 cup servings. 

Pancake Mix 

4 1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
4 c. old fashioned rolled oats

3 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

Pancakes:

1 c. homemade pancake mix
1 c. almond milk
1 large egg
2 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 batch of the pancake mix made as stated above can make about 8 small pancakes.  The nutritional information for them is below.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION - 97.4 Calories * 5.0g Total Fat * .5 Saturated Fat * 1.3 g. Polyunsaturated Fat *  2.4 g. Monounsaturated Fat * 23.1 mg. Cholesterol * 27.5 mg. Sodium * 31.3 mg. Potassium * 11.4 g. Total Carbohydrate * 1.5 g. Dietary Fiber * 2.6 g. Sugar * 2.5 g. Protein

Baked Oatmeal Snack Bars

I'm in love with this oat bar recipe.  It has no added sugar and is an awesome post or after workout snack for me.  I wrap them in individual pieces of plastic wrap for a quick grab and go bar.  If you aren't use to eating your oatmeal plain you might want to add a bit of sugar to this recipe but I love it.  You get a perfect amount of sweetness from the dried fruit. I found this recipe on Kath Eats. 

To up the protein a bit I added a scoop of protein powder to this recipe that you could of course omit. 

Baked Oatmeal Snack Bars

1 1/2 c. rolled old fashioned oats
1 scoop vanilla soy protein powder
1/4 c. dried cranberries
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
1/4 c. ground flax seeds (or any seeds you like)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 c. almond milk (original)
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix dry ingredients.  Mix wet ingredients. Pour wet into dry. Stir to combine. Pour into a 9×9 baking dish either coated in cooking spray or lined with parchment. Bake for 40 minutes. Cut into 9 squares. 

Makes 9 servings

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION -  227 Calories * 13 g. Fat * 20 g. Carbohydrates * 31 mg. Sodium * 7 g. Sugar * 6.8 g. Protein * 4.6 g. Fiber

Ants in a Tree

This is my take on a Chinese dish, ants in a tree.  Normally it is made with ground pork and mung bean noodles.  I thought the mung bean noodles tasted awful so I prefer to serve mine over rice and I substituted ground turkey just because it is a healthier lower calorie option.  This is such a quick easy dinner that my family loves.

Ants in a Tree 

1 lb. ground turkey
1/4 c. low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tbsp. sambal chili paste
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. canola oil
1/2 c. chicken broth 

Combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and chili paste in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Add the cornstarch and whisk until combined. Add the ground turkey and mix until thoroughly integrated. Set aside for 30 minutes.

Place a 12-inch saute pan over high heat for 1 minute. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Once the oil shimmers, add the meat mixture. Stir constantly for 2 minutes, breaking the meat up into very small pieces. Continue cooking and stirring until the meat is well browned and in very small pieces, approximately 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and add the broth. Cook until reduced, approximately 3 minutes.  Serve over rice.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:  210 Calories * 12.5 g. Fat *  499 mg. Sodium * 21 g. Protein  This recipe serves 6 about 1/2 c. per serving, rice not included in calorie count.

Lemon & White Wine Quinoa Pasta

This is the very first recipe I tried using quinoa pasta and my entire family loved it.  This is just such an awesome summer time dish and the lemon just makes it amazing.  I found the original recipe here at Cutesy Jingles.   All the dairy eaters in my house had Parmesan cheese added to the top of their pasta. Mine was perfectly delicious without it. I absolutely ADORE lemon so you might want to add about 1/2 the zest and give it a taste before adding the rest.    

Lemon & White Wine Quinoa Pasta

4 oz dry quiona spaghetti
1/4 cup grated Parmesan (*optional)
2 tsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic (or 2 large)
1/2 lemon
zest of one lemon
1/8 c. white wine
handful of basil leaves, chiffonaded


Add olive oil to a pan and start sauteing your garlic.  When fragrant add in the lemon juice and wine and allow to simmer while you cook your pasta.  Once your pasta has finished cooking add it directly into the pan with your lemon white wine sauce.  Now add in the lemon zest, basil and Parmesan cheese.  When serving you can top with additional cheese if you wish. 

As long as you salt your pasta water your pasta will be salty enough without needing any additional salt.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:  (Serving size roughly 3) 212 Calories * 6.1 g. Fat * 1.8 g.Saturated fat * 32.5 g. Carbohydrates * 131 mg. Sodium * 2.7 g. Fiber * 6.1 g. Protein 

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Pizza Dough

This turned out much better than I thought it would.  I was skeptical.  I mean it is really hard to make whole wheat pizza dough without adding in some white flour to make it taste better but I was really pleased with this recipe!  I found this recipe on Give Me Neither.  I modified the ingredients to suit what I was looking for a bit better.  I didn't eat much of this since I'm avoiding dairy but my kids and even my husband really liked this.  I wouldn't make bread sticks out of this dough but with the cheese and sauce it works really well with the whole wheat oatmeal crust.  I will definitely be making this again.

 Whole Wheat Oatmeal Pizza Dough
 
1 1/4 c. water
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. salt
2 1/4 c. whole wheat bread flour
2/3 c. ground old fashioned oats
1/4 c. vital wheat gluten
2 tbsp. honey
3 tsp. yeast

Using warm water (about 110 degrees) put in your yeast and honey and allow to sit while you grind your oats.  In a food processor grind your oats until they are the consistency of flour.  Then switch your food processor blade to the plastic blade and add in the wheat flour, gluten and salt.  With the food processor on slowly add in the water yeast mixture and oil and pulse until it turns into a rough dough ball.  Sprinkle some extra flour on the counter and knead your dough until a ball.  Let rise in a greased bowl for about 2 hours.  Separate the dough into two halves.  Roll out until desired size.  Since this dough is completely whole grain it is a bit more difficult to work with and roll out just be patient.  It also will not rise as much as a normal white dough.  In the meantime, preheat your oven to 500 degrees with a baking stone.  Top your pizza with your desired toppings and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden.  You can brush edges with olive oil if you wish as well.  

Now this nutritional information is just for the crust alone if you made 2 large pizzas and cut them into 8 slices (16 total).

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION - 157.2 Calories * 2.6 g. Fat * 29.3 g. Carbohydrates * 4.5 g Fiber * 2.3 g. Sugar * 6.5 g. Protein 

Chicken & Vegetable Quinoa Casserole

I've been hearing so much about quinoa lately and am a bit embarrassed to say I've never tried it before until this week.  I've been using quinoa pasta lately and love it and decided to finally use my box of quinoa in my pantry this week.  I was not disappointed.  I found a casserole recipe on Nelly's Pantry and was rather pleased to find that it was dairy-free.  It isn't often you find a dairy-free casserole since most of them are loaded with cream of chicken soup, cream of broccoli soup and mayonnaise.  I love that this one makes a chicken gravy and uses that instead.  Plus, casseroles are so versatile.  You can throw and vegetable you like into it.  You can throw one or many.  I added in broccoli, corn and carrots into mine.  Of course if you don't have a dairy allergy this recipe would be awesome with cheese.  I know my husband was probably thinking that the entire time he was eating it but he's wonderful enough to forgo his cheese in front of me and the kids since we can't eat it.

Mix all ingredients together.

Chicken & Vegetable Quinoa Casserole

1 1/2 c. uncooked quinoa
6 c. chicken stock
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. dairy-free butter or oil
2 bone in chicken breasts
1 c. broccoli
1/2 c. corn
1/2 c. sliced carrots
2 cloves minced garlic
1/3 c. panko breadcrumbs
Salt & Pepper to taste

Spread breadcrumbs evenly over top.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  On a baking sheet place your chicken breasts skin side up and season with a spray of cooking spray, salt and pepper and bake for 45 minutes.  Meanwhile cook your quinoa.  I think cooking it in chicken stock gives it better flavor but you can use water if you rather.  Add quinoa to a saucepan with 3 cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until all liquid has evaporated.  Set aside to cool in a large mixing bowl.  Steam all your vegetables for about 5 minutes to cook them just a bit and pour over the top of the quinoa.  Once chicken has baked set aside until cool enough to handle and remove breast from bone and chop.  Add chicken to the quinoa and vegetable mixture.  Now to make your sauce.  Add 3 tbsp. butter or oil to a saucepan over medium heat.  Add garlic and cook for a minute or two until nice and fragrant.  All in your flour and whisk until combined to make your roux.  Slowly add in your chicken stock (3 cups) while whisking to prevent lumps and bring to a boil until thick.  It should coat the back of a spoon quite well at this point.  If you rather you could cook your vegetables in the gravy instead of steam them but that's up to you.  Now pour the gravy over the quinoa, chicken and vegetable mixture and stir (gently) until combined.  Pour in a greased baking dish.  Add the panko to the top of the casserole and lightly spray with cooking spray.  Bake at 400 for 30 minutes or until golden brown.  I turned my broiler on high for the last 3-5 minutes to make the top extra golden.  

Baked to golden delicious perfection!

I entered all of the ingredients into this recipe calorie calculator found here - Recipe Calorie Counter   and determined that this recipe is roughly 205 calories for a 1/2 c. serving.  This is only an estimate.  I calorie count my meals these days so you will see many more of these nutrition facts on my site in the future.  
 

Nutrition Facts User Entered Recipe
12 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories		204.5
Total Fat		7.1 g
	Saturated Fat	3.5 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.6 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	2.1 g
Cholesterol		38.3 mg
Sodium		516.9 mg
Potassium		381.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate		22.0 g
	Dietary Fiber	2.2 g
	Sugars	2.5 g
Protein		13.6 g