INDIVIDUAL BAKED OATMEAL CUPS- CLEAN EATING

So many mornings we are running late for school and I will quickly throw instant oatmeal into the microwave...no more! My kids LOVE these and they can choose whatever toppings/flavors they want.

You can eat them like a muffin for an easy grab-and-go breakfast or you can eat them like oatmeal by simply putting in a bowl and stirring in a little warm milk. I store leftovers in the freezer, take one out the night before to thaw in the fridge and reheat in the microwave for about 60 seconds.

INDIVIDUAL BAKED OATMEAL CUPS- CLEAN EATING
makes 12 servings
adapted from sugarfreemom.com

1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cups applesauce, unsweetened
1 banana, mashed
1/4 cup honey
2 1/2 cups, Old Fashioned rolled oats
1/8 cup chai seeds (optional)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups milk
Optional toppings: blueberries, raisins, walnuts, chocolate chips, pomegranate seeds.


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix eggs, vanilla, applesauce, banana and honey together in a bowl.
Add in oats, chai seeds (if using), cinnamon, baking powder, salt and mix well with wet ingredients.
Finally pour in milk and combine.
Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.
Divide mixture evenly into muffin tin cups. I used a 1/4 measuring cup, measure just a tad under 1/4 cup to make 12 servings.
Add the toppings...

Bake 30 minutes until a toothpick in center comes out clean. Cool and enjoy or freeze them in gallon freezer bags.

My daughter chose blueberries, my son chose chocolate chips (of course), I sprinkled pomegranate seeds on mine (after baked) and my husband chose brown sugar.

As many of you know, I am passionate about nature and wildlife and I am constantly looking around to see nature in action. The other morning I saw it! I saw a coyote hunting a rabbit right in front of my living room window...

I first saw a coyote slowly walking around outside my house and then he suddenly took off after a rabbit. I grabbed my camera as fast as I could and I managed to catch the very end of the hunt. 

It is odd to see a coyote right in the middle of the city where I live, but apparently a small coyote pack has found the perfect spot in a wooded area right in my backyard. Every night at about midnight they start yipping and yelping, it is an eerie sound. My dogs are constantly on the lookout and so am I!

***Coyote Hunting Photos***



One of the pups all grown up...

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ROASTED SPAGHETTI SQUASH- CLEAN EATING

ROASTED SPAGHETTI SQUASH- CLEAN EATING
Serves 2

1 small clean spaghetti squash (about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 medium shallot, finely chopped

NOTE: 

I also added a little of my SLOW COOKER FRESH MARINARA SAUCE right before serving. I am so happy when I open a jar during these long cold winter months! Makes all those LONG hours of canning worth it!

Heat the oven to 400°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Brush the flesh with 1 tablespoon of the oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Place the squash halves cut-side up on a baking sheet and roast until fork tender, about 50 minutes.

Remove the squash from the oven and let sit at room temperature until cool enough to handle, about 30 minutes. Scrape the flesh with a fork to make long strands; set aside. I like to serve the strands in the squash itself for a nice presentation.

 

Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering, about 1-2 minutes. Add the garlic and shallot, season with salt and pepper, and cook until softened and lightly browned, about 2 minutes.

Add the reserved squash, toss with tongs to coat thoroughly, and cook until heated through, about 3 minutes. As noted above I  also added a little  SLOW COOKER FRESH MARINARA SAUCE right before serving.

These kids make my normal extremely boring time on the elliptical so entertaining!

On this day in particular, I was on the elliptical, blasting techno, in the dark, holding my phone in the air with the strobe light app on while the kids had a WILD dance party...BEST workout ever!

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SHRIMPCARGOT- CLEAN EATING

At my book club the other night the host had made an amazing meal for all of us. Lasagna, salad, garlic bread, shrimpcargot and chocolate cupcakes...I had a very unexpected cheat day! It was all amazing but my favorite was the shrimpcargot. I thought it was such a cute idea.

I changed up the original recipe a little to make it more healthy for me; however, if I were to make this for my husband I would follow the original recipe (follow the allrecipes link if interested).

SHRIMPCARGOT- CLEAN EATING
Makes 6 bite-size appetizers
adapted from www.allrecipes.com

2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 peeled and deveined large shrimp (21 to 25 per lb)

6  baby bella mushrooms, clean and stems removed

little salt (optional)

NOTE: The original recipe is amazing! So click the allrecipes.com link above if you want the original and don't mind butter and cheese. In my case I was planning on eating all the mushrooms myself so I cut out the cheese and butter.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Clean your mushrooms and take the stems out.

Heat the oil and garlic in a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, stir in the shrimp and cook until they just turn pink, turning once, about 1-2 minutes per side. 

Place one shrimp into each mushroom cap, and place into a small muffin pan or baking dish. Spoon the garlic oil into the mushroom caps.

 

Bake in the preheated oven until the mushrooms are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Add a little salt before serving if you are not using cheese.


This buck was in may backyard in August...you can see all the velvet on his antlers.

 This is him in December...his antlers are done growing and all dried up for the season.

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B.L.A.T. CUPS (BACON, LETTUCE, AVOCADO AND TOMATO)- CLEAN EATING

Last night, I walked into my dad's house and smelled the most wonderful smell EVER...toast! It is amazing how much you want something when you are trying not to eat it! I was craving it all night when I got home...then I remembered back to when I was little, on occasion my mom would get home from work and make BLT's for dinner. I loved it! Mostly the toast and bacon, of course!

I made this for lunch and thought I would share it with you. It would be an easy party appetizer too.

B.L.A.T. CUPS (BACON, LETTUCE, AVOCADO AND TOMATO)- CLEAN EATING
Serves 4

8 slices bacon- uncured
1 head of bibb lettuce
1 tomato
guacamole (recipe follows):
2 avocados
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, chopped (seeds removed if you don't like heat)
1/2 cilantro, chopped
juice from 1/2 lime
salt to taste

Make the guacamole:
Mash the avocados, garlic cloves, jalapeno, cilantro and lime juice together with a fork. Add salt to taste.

Carefully pull the clean bibb leaves apart.

Chop your tomato...

Make the bacon:
I usually make my bacon with the microwave because I like it crisp and the microwave seems like the easiest and best method for crisp bacon but use whatever works best for you.
Chop the bacon.

Assemble the B.L.A.T. Cups:

Load each bibb lettuce cup with guacamole, bacon and tomato.

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SHRIMP WITH ZUCCHINI "NOODLES" AND ROASTED RED PEPPER SAUCE- CLEAN EATING

Shrimp with Zucchini "Noodles" and Roasted Red Pepper Sauce- Clean Eating
Serves 4

4 zucchini
3 red bell peppers
1/2 medium onion, chopped small
3 cloves of garlic, minced
olive oil
raw shrimp
salt
pepper
Spinach leaves (optional)

Roast the Peppers:
Turn on the oven to 400 degrees. Place clean peppers in baking pan. Roast, turning occasionally until the skins are charred and the peppers collapse.

Once the skins are blackened place them in a Ziploc bag or cover the pan tightly with foil and  allow the peppers to sweat, for about 10-30 minutes. Peel the charred skins from the peppers...
and then remove seeds and set aside.

Make the Sauce:
In a skillet or pot over medium heat, drizzle in olive oil. Add diced onions and garlic and cook until soft, season with salt and pepper. Pour sauteed onions, garlic and the roasted peppers into a food processor and puree until desired consistency. Taste for flavor and add more salt or pepper if desired. Set aside.

Make the Noodles:
You can do this the night before and keep the noodles covered in the fridge. I prefer using a lemon zester but you can use a julienne peeler or a mandolin or even a knife if you have a lot of time a patience! Start at one end of the zucchini and use your zester to peel to the other end. Rotate around the zucchini and stop when you hit the seeds.

You will end up with a pile of zucchini noodles. Add a little oil to a medium-hot pan and saute for about 2 minutes or more if they are thicker. But don't over cook or they will be soggy. Set aside.

Saute the Shrimp:
Peel and devein the shrimp, Add a little oil a medium-hot pan and saute for about 1-2 minutes per side or until the shrimp are pink. Do not over cook or they will be rubbery.

Assemble:
Put the red pepper sauce on the plate. Add some spinach leaves on top (optional) or basil leaves may be nice for color. Toss the zucchini noodles with the red pepper sauce. Set a round mold (I use a biscuit cutter) on top of the spinach and fill with the noodles. Add the the shrimp on top and carefully slide the mold off.

Enjoy!

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SHREDDED CHICKEN TACOS IN CABBAGE CUPS- CLEAN EATING

The other day I pulled out the slow cooker to make shredded chicken. It took a little longer than I was planning on and by the time the chicken was ready to be shredded it was unfortunately time for the kids to go to bed, luckily I had leftover Chicken Fried Cauliflower "Rice". So in a hurry, I took the chicken out of the slow cooker and set it on a plate on the counter just waiting to be shredded. I put the kids to bed and when I got back into the kitchen my plate was still perfectly sitting there on the counter but there wasn't one piece of chicken left on it...in walks Buddy, with a not-so-innocent swagger.

I hope you enjoyed your ridiculously expensive organic chicken breasts!

Onto tonight...I tried again, this time I had less time so I skipped the slow cooker and went right to simmering on the stove top. It worked great and tasted even better.

SHREDDED CHICKEN TACOS IN CABBAGE CUPS- CLEAN EATING

3 Chicken Breasts

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon table salt

Small Red Cabbage

Toppings:
red pepper
shredded spinach
onions
you name it...use whatever you like best


Note: if you don't like the taste of cabbage go with lettuce cups. I personally love cabbage and I like how cabbage is thicker than lettuce so it doesn't fall apart or wilt from the heat of the chicken. And I love the color! Also you can easily skip the spices and add a taco seasoning packet instead...just make sure you check the ingredients and make sure it isn't filled with additives and preservatives.

In a pot, mix together one cup of water and spices. Add the chicken breasts and bring to a boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and add water if needed. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about 40 minutes or so, stirring occasionally and checking for when it is ready to shred...approximately 40 minutes.
Shred with two forks and keep the shredded chicken in the pot.

Carefully pull the clean cabbage leaves apart.

Put the chicken in the cabbage cups and add whatever toppings you prefer.

Life is good!

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CHICKEN FRIED CAULIFLOWER "RICE"- CLEAN EATING

CHICKEN FRIED CAULIFLOWER "RICE"- CLEAN EATING
1 medium to large sized head of cauliflower
2-3 tablespoons coconut oil or preferred cooking oil
1 medium sized onion, diced
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup chicken breast, cut into pieces
2 large eggs, cracked & lightly beaten (set aside)
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
Ginger powder, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
Coarse sea salt and cracked pepper, to taste
Soy Sauce or Coconut Aminos (A soy sauce substitute at local health store), to taste

Note: I cook my eggs and chicken separately from everything else, sometimes I cook like I am a preschooler (I don't want anything touching in the pan) but you can easily cook the chicken with the onions and scramble the eggs in with the cauliflower.

Grate the cauliflower using a food processor with the grater attachment or use a hand grater until it is at rice consistency.

Preheat two woks/pans over medium-high heat.  Two pans are useful because if you overfill a pan you will cause the ingredients to steam instead of brown and fry. It is important to have room to spread out the ingredients while cooking.

Add about two tablespoons of oil and the onions to one of the hot pans. Cook the onions until soft and translucent.

In the other pan, cook the chicken pieces in a little oil until they are no longer pink in the middle. Set aside. Add the egg to the pan and scramble. Set aside.

Now add the cauliflower to the same pan, (add a little oil if needed) spread it out and cook the cauliflower, allowing it to brown a little. Stir frequently. Repeat this until evenly browned. It should take about 5 minutes. (Don’t forget to keep an eye on the pan with the onions).

Add the scrambled eggs with the cauliflower. Remove from heat when ready.

Now back to the pan with the onions: Add the mushrooms, garlic powder and ginger powder to the onions. Continue to cook, spreading out, stirring & tossing the ingredients often. Remember to spread ingredients out evenly in the pan between ‘tossing’ so that they can ‘brown’ not steam. Add the cooked chicken.

When both of the mixtures are ready (the cauliflower will be done first), combine them into one pan and toss until evenly mixed. Garnish with green onions, salt and pepper and coconut aminos (or soy sauce) to taste.

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FAVORITE COOKIES

My favorite cookie list for the holidays...just click on the title of the cookie recipe you like to link to the recipe. Merry Christmas and Happy Baking!

CHRISTMAS SUGAR COOKIES


SNICKERDOODLES

MOLASSES SPICE COOKIES WITH DARK RUM GLAZE

JAM THUMBPRINT COOKIES

CHOCOLATE CHUNK OATMEAL COOKIES WITH PECANS AND DRIED CHERRIES

STRAWBERRY AND ROSEMARY SCONES


LEMON, COCONUT & WHITE CHOCOLATE COOKIES


DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHERRY ESPRESSO COOKIES


PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES


THICK AND CHEWY TRIPLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES


THE BEST THICK AND CHEWY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES


HOMEMADE SOFT OREOS

BLUEBERRY BOY BAIT

I am obsessed with blueberries...can't get enough. Fresh or frozen I will take them anyway I can get them! I especially love to bake with them. This is one of my favorite coffee cakes; loaded with blueberries and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.
Mr. Kimball, from ATK writes, "This is my all-time favorite recipe name. It comes from Renny Powell, a teenager from Chicago, who submitted this recipe in 1954 to the Pillsbury $100,000 Recipe & Baking Contest (now known as the Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest) and won second prize in the junior division. This is a very light one-layer cake with blueberries and a simple crumble topping. Ms. Powell evidently found it useful in attracting members of the opposite sex and, based on my testing, I would have to agree that it's pretty good bait."

Blueberry Boy Bait
The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2008

Cake:
16 T unsalted butter, softened
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1 t salt
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 cups whole milk
3/4 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen, tossed with 1 t flour

Topping:
3/4 cup blueberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 t ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour a 9x13 pan.
Whisk flour, powder, and salt in medium bowl.
With a mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 min., scraping the sides when needed.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until just incorporated.
Reduce speed to medium and beat in 1/3 of the flour mixture until incorporated; beat in 1/2 of the milk.
Beat in 1/2 of the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk, finally the rest of the flour.
Gently fold blueberries into the batter.
Pour the batter into the pan and smooth with a spatula.
For the topping, scatter the berries over the top of the batter.
Mix the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl and sprinkle over the batter.
Bake about 45 min.
Cool the cake in the pan for 20 minutes.
Cut into squares and serve warm or at room temperature.

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