Recipes

Tasty Banana Muffins That Are Good For You!

by Jennifer | No Comments Friday, April 27, 2012

These fantastic muffins only have about 150 calories and 5 grams of fat each. Not bad, considering most muffins have at least 300 calories a piece. They don’t have any butter or oil, and are so tasty you will want two of them, and that is ok! The recipe yields about 15 muffins.

You will need:
-1 1/2 cup flour
-1 cup of quick oats
-1/4 cup sugar
-1/2 cup brown sugar
-2 tsp. baking powder
-1 tsp. baking soda
-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
-1/2 tsp. salt
-1 egg, beaten
-3/4 cup skim milk
-1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
-1/2 tsp. vanilla
-1 tsp. maple extract
-1 cup mashed bananas (about 3)
-3 tbsp. ground flax (optional, but it doesn’t affect the flavor and is really great for you!)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees farenheit. Mix all ingredients together by combining wet ingredients and dry ingredients separately, then slowly incorporate the two together until you have a smooth batter. Spray muffin pans with non-stick spray, and insert muffin cups. Fill each cup about 3/4 of the way, and bake for 18-20 minutes on the center rack. We have found that 18 minutes is best, but it really depends on your oven.

If you would like, you can add one of these to your muffins:
-raisins, 1/4 cup
-chocolate chips, 1/4 cup
-blueberries, 1/4 cup
-pecans, 1/2 cup

Enjoy! I know we are!

Eating Healthy On A Budget

by Jennifer | No Comments Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Nowadays, when you think of eating cheap, you think of fast and easy as well. While it may be more convenient to eat off the dollar menu, or buy those high calorie pre-packaged meals at the store that are on clearance, you’re not really getting the best deal. What you are paying for is the bells and whistles (packaging and marketing) and all those fillers and preservatives that provide no nutritional value to you. But if you know what to look for, you can eat very well, and healthy, on a low or fixed budget.

1. Limit Meat Consumption

Meat is typically the most expensive item in your grocery cart, and designating one or two days a week to having no meat will greatly reduce your cost, and it is great for your health!

2. Buy In Season

It is possible to have those really nice fruits and vegetables that you like to splurge on from time to time, all you have to do is pace yourself and wait until they are in season. If there is something that you absolutely love and the price is right, buy in modest bulk and freeze what you don’t use immediately. Just check beforehand to see how long they will keep in the freezer, and be sure to use it all before then to avoid waste.

3. Buy Frozen Instead Of Fresh When Possible

More often than not, frozen fruits and vegetables have the same nutritional value as buying fresh, and it is almost always a great deal cheaper.

4. Make A Weekly Meal Plan

Take an hour out of your Sunday to go through the weekly grocery specials and make a list of meals for every day of the following week, and make your grocery list accordingly. This will save you a great deal of money and cut down on waste.

5. Buy Store Brand As Much As Possible

Most store brand products are almost, if not exactly, the same as name brands. Of course, there may be a few items here and there that you are certain are just not the same otherwise, but the staples such as pasta, rice, bread, etc. won’t let you down with the store brand, and you will save a great deal of money right off the bat.

For more great tips on eating well on a low budget, check out this blog from Frugal Living!

Healthier Alternatives For Common Ingredients In Baking

by Jennifer | No Comments Monday, February 27, 2012

Baking is all about experimenting. For those of us who don’t bake regularly, it’s great knowing that someone else discovered these great ingredient swaps. But we encourage everyone to at least be familiar with it, and do it as often as you can manage. While some of these substitutions are for people with food allergies, they are all healthier alternatives that will greatly reduce the amount of fat and calories in your recipe, without sacrificing any taste or texture. We regularly stick to these in my home, and you can’t tell the difference! These amounts are generalized to one cup, so you will need to convert them to fit your recipe. Bonus: if you are baking and find yourself without some of these main ingredients, you now know how to keep going without ruining the recipe!

-Applesauce for oil

Use 2/3 the amount of applesauce in place of oil. Example: 2/3 cup of applesauce instead of 1 cup of oil.

-Yogurt For Butter

Convert half of each half needed. Example: for every cup of butter needed, instead use 1/2 cup of butter and 1/4 cup of yogurt.

-Peanut Butter And Bananas For Butter

Convert evenly. Example: for every cup of butter needed, use 1/2 cup of peanut butter and 1/2 cup of bananas.

-Vinegar For Buttermilk

For every cup of buttermilk needed, simply put 1 tbsp. of vinegar in a cup, fill to top with skim milk.

-Half and Half for Heavy Cream

Supstitute and equal amount of half and half for cream.

Do you have any baking subsitutions that you swear by? We would love to know about it!

The Amazing Disappearing Chicken Salad Sandwich!

by Jennifer | No Comments Tuesday, January 24, 2012

I am way too picky about my chicken salad sandwich. I can name only a handful of places that serve it up in a way that I find satisfying. Call me a simpleton, but I prefer mine without all the bells and whistles, in such a way that my flavor palatte is not overwhelmed by trying to decipher every one of the 30 ingredients added to make it “special.” I consider mine unique in it’s own way, with the right amount of texture and flavor that the whole family will enjoy. The recipe below will yield about 8-10 servings.

-2 lbs. chicken, either baked with salt, pepper, and garlic for 45 minutes at 375 degrees and chopped. Or if you are looking for a quick meal, try a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken, pulled apart.
-6 eggs, boiled and chopped
-2 stalks of celery, chopped
-2 green onions, chopped
-6 strips (1/4 lb.) bacon, chopped and fried on a pan. For a quicker alternative, crumble pre-cooked bacon.
-1/2 cup real mayonnaise
-2 tbsp. dill relish
-the juice of 1/2 a lemon
-1 tbsp. pepper (fresh ground is best if you have it.)
-1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
-salt to taste

Simply mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, add salt at the end to taste (the chicken and bacon add salt to the recipe, so use sparingly.) Serve it up on toasted wheat bread, and ta da! See how fast it disappears!

Mark’s Baked Potato Soup

by Jennifer | No Comments Wednesday, January 11, 2012

My chef husband has perfected the baked potato soup. He is the kind of man who will take a common food, and make it better. It is such a gift! This recipe is very easy and will be a great meal for your family or friends. Makes about 6-8 servings (not including seconds!)

Ingredients:

-5 medium sized baked and peeled butter red potatoes (russet will do if you have those)
-5 strips of bacon, chopped
-2 cups chopped leeks
-5 tbsp. butter
-5 tbsp. flour
-3 cups chicken stock
-2 cups water
-1/2 cup half and half
-1/4 tsp. each of black, white, and cayenne pepper
-1/2 tsp. dried oreggano
-salt to taste
-shredded cheese
-sour cream

In a large soup pot:
-Fry the bacon on med-high. Remove bacon, leaving the fat.
-Add in the leeks, reduce heat to medium and carmelize for about 5 minutes
-Add 2 tbsp. butter and 2 tbsp. flour, stir well.
-Pour in the chicken stock and water, bring to a boil.
-Dice 3 potatoes in 1″ cubes, mash the other 2, add to pot.
-Add half and half, reduce heat to low.
-In a microwave safe bowl, heat 3 tbsp. of butter and 3 tbsp. of flower for 1 minute, stir with a fork to make a paste, whisk into pot.
-With an immersion blender, lightly blend the soup to add a creamy texture, but not so much as to get rid of all chunks of potato. If you don’t have one, you can add a couple cups at a time to a regular blender.
-stir in the black, white, and cayenne pepper and dried oreggano
-taste the soup first, because the bacon fat should make it salty enough, but you can add more to taste if desired
-serve into bowls, top with shredded cheese, bacon, and sour cream.

Enjoy!