I love that saying.  I love it because it’s simple and because it’s so true.  It’s a saying that I like to remind myself of whenever I am feeling challenged or whenever I begin telling myself I can’t accomplish something.  It’s definitely a good motivator and a good way to maintain a healthy mindset.

When Elizabeth posted about the Super Breakfast Bowl Challenge, I knew it was something in which I had to participate.  Elizabeth, along with Jessica, Janel, Corinne, and Lindsey, all decided to create a breakfast challenge involving five main ingredients.  For each day of the five day challenge, a certain ingredient would be highlighted.  Participants are asked to create a breakfast dish/recipe with the star ingredient and enter it into their contest.  At random (using random.org), the winner will be selected and thus will be rewarded with fabulous prizes.  In addition, the winner of each day/ingredient will be highlighted on all five of the bloggers’ blogs.  Again, there are five ingredients in this challenge, therefore giving participants five separate chances to win.  And, participants get to come up with a creative and fun recipe and a new way to incorporate a healthy ingredient into their breakfast.  So, you really can’t lose!

Image Credit – zazzle.com

The first ingredient in the Super Bowl Breakfast Challenge is an ingredient of which I can never seem to get enough.  The ingredient is avocado.  Because I’m a fan of savory versus sweet foods for breakfast, it didn’t take me too long to come up with my entry.  But instead of making this creation as I normally would, I gave it a little twist.

Colorful Tofu Scramble
Serves 1

• a little less than 1/2 a brick of lite silken tofu (I used Nasoya brand)
• a big handful of spinach
• 1/3 cup of tomato, chopped
• 1/4 cup of fresh parsley, chopped
• 1/2 avocado, chopped
• few shakes of Adobo powder
• s&p

1) Lightly coat a medium frying pan with cooking spray.  Turn the heat on to medium/medium high and begin cooking the tofu.  It will be very soft and will crumble easily.  With a spatula, begin moving it around and breaking it up a bit.

2) After a few minutes of cooking, add the Adobo powder, salt and pepper to the tofu.  Mix everything around a bit; it will start looking like scrambled eggs.

3) Add your spinach and mix everything around until the spinach leaves begin to wilt.  Add your tomatoes.  Mix everything around again for another couple of minutes.

4) Add your avocado and gently mix again.  Try not to mush your avocado too much.

5) Once everything is warm, eat!

For the second ingredient in the Super Bowl Breakfast Challenge, I decided to vamp up a classic breakfast food.  I figured it would be fun to ‘healthify’ and spiff up a breakfast staple that tends to get a bum rap.  I decided to make pancakes with flax, the second challenge ingredient.  I figured if I could combine a nutritious item such as ground flax with a food that tends to lack nutrients, how could it not be a winner?  Plus, I also wanted to come up with another way to eat my beloved oats.

Banana Flax Pancakes
Serves 1

• 1/3 cup of oat flour (dry oats ground until they reach a flour-like consistency)
• 2 TSP of flax meal
• 1/8 TSP of baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1/3 of a ripe banana, sliced (the more ripe, the better)
• squirt of agave nectar or maple syrup for topping

1) Grind your dry oats until you get the consistency of flour.

2) In a medium bowl, mix your oat flour, flax meal, baking powder, salt, egg whites and banana slices.  Mix until everything is well-blended and the bananas are completely mashed into the oat flour mixture.

3) Let your pancake mixture sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes.

4) Coat a frying pan with cooking spray.  Turn the heat onto medium/medium high and pour your pancake batter into a giant circle/pancake.  Or, you can make 2 or 3 smaller pancakes.  I made one giant pancake.

5) Let the pancake sit untouched for 5 – 7 minutes.  The batter will be quite thick if you are making just one pancake.  Once you can move the frying pan around and the pancake easily moves off of the pan, you are ready to flip.  Be careful as the inside may still be a tiny bit soft.

6) Once flipped, allow the other side to cook for another 5 minutes.

7) Place your pancake on your plate and top with agave or maple syrup.  Enjoy!

I had a blast creating both of these recipes.  Participating in this challenge gave me the chance to get the wheels of my imagination turning and to get my competitive juices flowing.  And while I know winning any of the contests in the Super Bowl Breakfast Challenge doesn’t have anything to do with who can come up with the better recipe, I definitely wanted to give it my best shot.  Unfortunately, random.org was not in my favor for either of the first two ingredients.  I may have had creativity going for me, but not dumb luck.  No worries, I certainly didn’t mind, nor was I disappointed.  Whenever I have the opportunity to challenge myself, learn something new and be creative, I can’t lose.  And as Mother Healthy Chow always told me whenever I would come home complaining about some of the mean elementary school kids, “I don’t care what you say.  You’re always a winner to me!“  Awww, thanks MHC!

***BTW, there are still two ingredients left in the Super Breakfast Bowl Challenge.  You have until the end of today to submit a recipe and pictures for quinoa, and you have until Thursday to submit a recipe and pictures for walnuts.  For more details, you can go here.***

Are there any words of wisdom you remember from your childhood that your parents or family members may have passed down to you?  Do you have a favorite quote or saying that motivates you?

Namasté,
Nicole

Avocado Entry HealthyChow X Reply | Nicole Chow to thesuperbreakf. show details Feb 14 (2 days ago) Hello, It’s Nicole from HealthyChow.com!  I hope I’m not too late to submit my entry for avocado.  Here goes… Colorful Tofu Scramble a little less than 1/2 a brick of silken lite tofu a big handful of spinach 1/3 cup of tomato, chopped 1/4 cup of fresh parsley, chopped 1/2 avocado, chopped few shakes of Adobo powder s&p 1) Lightly coat a medium frying pan with cooking spray.  Turn the heat on to medium/medium high and begin cooking your tofu.  It will be very soft and will crumble easily.  Begin moving it around and breaking it up a bit. 2) After a few minutes of cooking, add the Adobo, salt and pepper to the tofu.  Mix everything around a bit; it will start looking like scrambled eggs. 3) Add your spinach and mix everything around until the spinach leaves begin to wilt.  Add your tomatoes.  Mix everything around again for another couple of minutes. 4) Add your avocado and gently mix again.  Try not to mush your avocado too much. 5) Once everything is warm, eat! This is SO tasty and fast to make.  It tastes just like scrambled eggs (but it’s vegan!)!  It’s filling and the colors are just amazing.  It’s a great way to start the day! Thank you, Ladies! Regards, Nicole www.healthychow.com 3 attachments — Download all attachments View all images February 2010 43 blog photos 140.JPG 1438K   View Download February 2010 43 blog photos 144.JPG 1490K   View Download February 2010 43 blog photos 176.JPG 1402K   View Download Reply Forward Super is not available to chat Super Breakfast Hi Nicole! This looks so tasty! unfortunately, random.org was not in your fav… Feb 15 (2 days ago) Reply | Nicole Chow to Super show details Feb 15 (2 days ago) Oh boo!  Well, I’m glad I wasn’t too late then!  I’ll work on my entry for flax right now.  Thanks again. Enjoy the day -Nicole - Show quoted text - On Mon, Feb 15, 2010 at 9:15 AM, Super Breakfast <thesuperbreakfastbowlchallenge@gmail.com> wrote: Hi Nicole! This looks so tasty! unfortunately, random.org was not in your favor today-sorry about that! There’s still time to submit other recipes though!! thanks for entering the contest and enjoy this free Monday! cheers! elizabeth On Sun, Feb 14, 2010 at 11:56 PM, Nicole Chow <healthychow@gmail.com> wrote: Hello, It’s Nicole from HealthyChow.com!  I hope I’m not too late to submit my entry for avocado.  Here goes… Colorful Tofu Scramble a little less than 1/2 a brick of silken lite tofu a big handful of spinach 1/3 cup of tomato, chopped 1/4 cup of fresh parsley, chopped 1/2 avocado, chopped few shakes of Adobo powder s&p 1) Lightly coat a medium frying pan with cooking spray.  Turn the heat on to medium/medium high and begin cooking your tofu.  It will be very soft and will crumble easily.  Begin moving it around and breaking it up a bit. 2) After a few minutes of cooking, add the Adobo, salt and pepper to the tofu.  Mix everything around a bit; it will start looking like scrambled eggs. 3) Add your spinach and mix everything around until the spinach leaves begin to wilt.  Add your tomatoes.  Mix everything around again for another couple of minutes. 4) Add your avocado and gently mix again.  Try not to mush your avocado too much. 5) Once everything is warm, eat! This is SO tasty and fast to make.  It tastes just like scrambled eggs (but it’s vegan!)!  It’s filling and the colors are just amazing.  It’s a great way to start the day! Thank you, Ladies! Regards, Nicole www.healthychow.com Reply Forward Super is not available to chat

“You’re once, twice, three times a layyyydddddddeeeeeeeee….”

Image Credit – east-side-patch.livejournal.com

I love reading blogs, whether they be healthy food, healthy lifestyle, yoga, cooking, baking, shopping or DIY, I love them all.  I enjoy reading how people create things, how they come up with these ideas and what the end result turns out to be.  Essentially, I love learning new things and reading blogs is one of the best ways for me to do so.  For example, I was fascinated by Kath’s Pumpkin Pie Cake (I demonstrated that here) ever since I read about it months and months ago and most recently, I’ve been consumed (some pun fun) by Tina’s 3-Minute Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.  Both of these recipes are so easy and seem so tasty that I had no choice but to give them a try.  Plus, they literally take minutes to assemble.  And the less time I have to wait and the faster I can eat means the sooner I’m a happier Healthy Chow.  That said, I kept these two recipes in the back of my mind (there’s actually an echo back there – hahahahaha!) and started doing some experimenting in the kitchen.

Image Credit – tumblr.com

My first foray into the world of microwaveable healthy sweet treats went pretty well.  I used a 1/2 cup of pumpkin, 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites, 1 TBSP of whole wheat flour, 1/2 TSP of baking powder, 1/2 TSP of cocoa powder, a sprinkle of cinnamon and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice.  I plopped that all into a bowl I covered with cooking spray, mixed it all up and then microwaved on high for 2 1/2 minutes.  I topped it with some nonfat ricotta cheese and it tasted pretty good.  However, it seemed a bit ‘wet’ and didn’t have the cake-like consistency that I was looking for or for which I was craving.  Not bad, but not perfect either.

The next stab was kinda meh.  I decided I would use the same ingredients as in my first try, but added in some finely ground almonds (I chopped up 10 raw almonds in my food chopper until I got a finely ground consistency).  For whatever reason, the extra kick of almonds made this recipe taste weird.  Plus, it was a bit too pumpkin-y for my taste (le horror!) and still a bit too wet.  If at first you don’t succeed (and at second), try, try again!

Ding!  Ding!  Ding! The third time was a charm (or a lady)!  This time, my results were spot-on.  I achieved the consistency I was striving for, in addition to the flavor I was hoping to create.

Fee-Fi-Faux-Yum! Pumpkin Cake
Serves 1

• 1/4 cup of Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 1/4 cup of old-fashioned dry oatmeal, finely ground (I measured out a 1/4 cup of dry oats and then ground them in my food chopper – it might be a tad less than a 1/4 cup after it’s been ground )
• 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1 TBSP of whole wheat flour
• 1/2 TSP of baking powder
• 1/4 TSP of cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s brand)
• a generous sprinkling of cinnamon, plus more for garnish
• a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice
• cooking spray
• agave nectar or maple syrup (optional)

1) Coat the bottom and sides of a shallow bowl with cooking spray.

2) Mix together the pumpkin, the ground oatmeal, the egg whites, the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice in the coated bowl until well-blended.  Spread the mixture down evenly at the bottom of your bowl until you get something that resembles a pancake.

Dry oats

Presto!  Finely ground oats…

In the mix…

Ready for baking (or microwaving…)

3) Microwave on high for 2 1/2 minutes, covered with a paper towel.  Be careful when taking the bowl out of the microwave as it will be extremely hot!

Hot!

4) Allow the cake to cool for about a minute.  Remove to a plate or eat straight from the bowl.  Top with a drizzle of agave nectar or maple syrup.  Sprinkle with a bit of cinnamon and devour!

It’s like magic…!

Incredible!  It’s a good thing I have a bit of stamina or this little diddy may never have come to fruition.  While my first couple of tries at this were less than stellar, the final attempt was a huge success.  This tasted just like a piece of carrot cake, even though there wasn’t a speck of carrot in it.  Plus, the combination of the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and the agave nectar made this healthy treat taste more ‘treat’ than ‘healthy’.  The addition of the ground oatmeal helped to give this dish the much needed fluff factor.  My other attempts fell sort of flat (more pun fun) because there wasn’t enough substance to the recipe.  Plus, I reduced the amount of pumpkin in order to make this more cake-like versus bread pudding-like.  There was just the right amount of sweetness and protein to make this dish both appetizing and filling.  This is definitely going in the rotation for both breakfast and dessert!

Can’t wait to dig in!

What a cake walk!

“Hello?…Is it me you’re looking for?” – yes, my Fe-Fi-Faux-Yum! Pumpkin Cake, you are what I’m looking for!

Is there any music you remember from your childhood that you now love?  My mom used to always play Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Barry White, etc. in the house and they have now become some of my favorites.  What are some of yours?

Namasté,
Nicole

Doh!  Just when you think you’re done posting all of your recipes for Christmas, a little birdie chirps and tells you…”Hey!  When the heck are you gonna post your recipe for that pumpkin lasagna you made?”  I totally forgot!  I blame it on the cookies…

When it’s time for the holidays, all I can think of is food.  And the more, the better!  It’s not like anyone in my family is going to go hungry if a certain dish isn’t present at the table, but for whatever reason, I just feel better knowing it’s there.  Call it what you want (insanity, cray-cray, loca, nuts, bonkers, lights are on – nobody’s home), but it’s just how I roll… For that reason, I decided we needed to have a lasagna at Christmas dinner.  Even though I knew there was already going to be a turkey and a roast beef and all the fixings present, I just couldn’t resist bringing a pasta dish.  But instead of going the traditional route, I decided to spice things up a bit and put a new spin on the ordinary lasagna.

Pumped-Up Pumpkin Lasagna
Inspired by Food Mayhem and Taste of Home
Makes a 13 x 9-inch tray

• 1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 2 TSP of olive oil
• 1 lb. of Sweet Italian Style Chicken Sausage, chopped (I used Trader Joe’s brand, about 7 links)
• 1 pound 5 ounces (or 21 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella, divided
• 1 1/2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 1/2 TBSP of buttery spread (or butter)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 15 oz. cans of Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 3 TBSP of light brown sugar
• 1 TBSP of agave nectar (or pure maple syrup)
• 1 TSP of  cinnamon
• 1/4 TSP of nutmeg
• 1 TSP of dried sage leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• pinch white pepper
• 8 regular lasagna sheets (I used Barilla brand, NOT the no-bake kind)

1) In a large skillet on medium-high heat, sauté the mushrooms, onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt in olive oil until tender, about 3 – 5 minutes.  Then, add the chicken sausage and cook until the sausage starts to brown a little (the sausage is already fully-cooked, so you are just heating up).  Turn the heat down to medium and heat everything together for another few minutes.  Set aside.

2) In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese and 12 oz. of the mozzarella cheese.  Set aside.

3) In a medium-sized pot, melt butter on low heat.  Add garlic and brown lightly.  Stir in pumpkin, brown sugar, agave nectar, cinnamon, nutmeg, dried sage, salt and pepper.  Stir until it’s all warm.  Remove from heat and set aside.

4) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

4) Spray your baking dish with cooking spray.  Smear a thin layer of the pumpkin mixture on the bottom of the baking dish.

5) If you’re not good at eyeballing things (like me), divide your remaining pumpkin mixture, your ricotta cheese mixture and your meat mixture into two equal portions.

6) Top the thin layer of pumpkin mixture with 3 lasagna noodles going lengthwise and 1 going widthwise (you’ll have to break/shorten this in order for it to fit).  Using one of the reserved portions of the ricotta cheese mixture, smooth it over the noodles.  Using one of the reserved portions of the meat mixture, top the ricotta cheese.  Repeat this process again starting with one of the reserved portions of the pumpkin mixture, then the noodles, then the ricotta cheese mixture, then the meat mixture and then end with the pumpkin mixture.  Top the final layer of the pumpkin mixture with the remaining shredded mozzarella cheese.

7) Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.  Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

One word for this dish.  OK, maybe two words.  Delicious and hearty.  I think some of my family members were a tad concerned when I told them what was on the dining room table was a pumpkin lasagna.  I’m not sure if they envisioned a dessert-like version of the multi-layered noodle treat or if they just thought it was weird that I would change up a classic and add something as odd (to them) as pumpkin.  But their faces definitely expressed some doubt and hesitation until they took a chance and finally took a bite.  Once they tasted this dish, they were pleasantly pleased (as was I).  One of my relatives actually said, “this tastes just like a regular lasagna, but only spicier and better.”

In fact, this recipe does taste very similar to a traditional lasagna, except not as acidic and a bit sweeter.  The dried sage definitely gave this lasagna a nice kick in flavor and complimented the subtle sweetness of the pumpkin.  All of the rich flavors and layers helped to make this recipe quite the filling one.  Just a tiny piece was enough to make a meal (even though I had a big piece along with turkey, roast beef, caesar salad, stuffing…but heck, that was so last year!).  And while this dish tasted great with the flavoring from the sweet Italian chicken sausage, it could easily be made without meat or with meat-free sausage.  As a side note, I used the regular lasagna noodles in this recipe.  I just put them in the recipe uncooked and baked them.  They turned out great, and not hard at all.  Actually, the noodles were perfectly al-dente.  I have found that boiling the noodles and then baking can sometimes produce a mushy lasagna.

I will definitely make this recipe again.  However, next time I’m going to make a mental note to make more than the suggested amount of pumpkin purée mixture.  Or, perhaps I will try to thin out the mixture a bit?  It seemed that I had trouble evenly spreading the pumpkin during the layering process and felt as if I was going to run out.  But if you’re a fan of this fibrous orange gourd like I am, then lather it on thick and make this dish pleasantly plump and you’ll be pumped to have this grace your dinner plate.

***And if you need another reason to try out this recipe, just check out what’s #11 on this list (thanks Kevin!)!***

After baking my cookies the other day, I noticed there were slight stains left on my baking sheet.  I didn’t spray any cooking spray or use any grease on my sheet before baking and the cookies had no problem sliding off.  Anyone know why this would have happened?  The baking sheet is pretty good quality, too. Your thoughts?

Namasté,
Nicole

If you read my last post, you’ll know that I was in cookie heaven this past weekend.  I attended my first cookie swap and was excited to see what all the party guests were going to bring.  But, if I was excited to find out what they were going to be making and bringing to the party, I figured they were all anticipating the same about me.  Thus, I wanted to find a recipe that was different, somewhat ‘healthy’, delicious (obvi) and something that I could easily execute.  With all the various criteria I wanted in my cookie recipe, it took me more than a few minutes of searching both on and offline to find the right one.  Just when I was about to give up and go with the standard chocolate chip cookie, I found the perfect recipe!

Lemon Almond Cranberry Crescents
Inspired by Whole Living
Makes 3 dozen

• 1/4 cup of evaporated cane juice (I used Florida Crystals)
• 1/8 cup of agave nectar (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
• 1/2 cup raw almonds, finely ground (I used close to 2 individual serving bags of Trader Joe’s raw almonds)
• 6 TBSP of Smart Balance 50/50 Butter Blend Stick (thank for the idea, Shannon!)
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 1 TBSP of fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 TSP of lemon zest
• 1/4 cup of dried cranberries, chopped (again, more Trader Joe’s brand)
• 1 1/2 cups plus 1 TBSP all-purpose flour
• Vanilla sugar, for rolling

1) Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix until combined, about 2 minutes (I used my hands).

I used my food chopper to chop up my almonds until they were finely ground…

The ground almonds with the Smart Balance and unsweetened applesauce…

Now with the all-purpose flour, dried cranberries, lemon juice and lemon zest…

Once giant ball of dough…

2) Let rest at room temperature for 2 hours.

3) Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Roll 1 tablespoon of dough into a crescent shape.  Place on a baking sheet.  Repeat.  Bake until light golden brown, 20 – 25 minutes.  Cool on trays for 10 minutes.

Roll a tablespoon worth of dough into a long tube shape …

Bend into a crescent shape until it looks like an um,…a crescent!

Ready to bake!

4) Roll in vanilla sugar*

It’s more of a ‘vanilla sprinkling’ versus a ‘vanilla rolling’…

*From giftsfromyourkitchen.com – To make vanilla sugar, combine 2 cups of evaporated cane juice (or sugar) and 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract.  Mix until well-blended.  Spread vanilla sugar onto a wax paper-lined tray.  Let dry for about 4 hours.  Place vanilla sugar in a sealable plastic bag.  Seal and crush vanilla sugar with a rolling pin until smooth.  Or, place vanilla sugar in a large bowl and crush with the back of a spoon until smooth.  Store vanilla sugar in an airtight container.  You can also make vanilla sugar by splitting two vanilla beans and placing them in an airtight container with 2 cups of evaporated cane juice (or sugar).  Let stand overnight and up to 3 months.

These cookies (or crescents) were great!  While they technically were ‘cookies’, I felt that they had more of a tea biscuit/biscotti taste.  The original recipe seemed a bit bland when I first read through it, but served as a good base.  I felt that it needed some sprucing up and could use a little zing.  But, I didn’t want to add any more sweetener or too many more calories.  Thus, I threw in some dried cranberries, lemon juice and lemon zest to give this recipe some much needed tartness and zip.  The result was fantastic!  While I was skeptical about the vanilla sugar and the impact that it would make on the cookies, the vanilla sugar actually gave the cookie a nice subtle sweetness that paired well with the lemon flavoring.  The size of these crescents were also perfect – both for the cookie swap and for my consumption.  Like potato chips (and french fries), I can’t just have one cookie.  But because these cookies were small and were only about 60 calories each, I didn’t feel so bad eating a few at a time

I felt my crescents were a nice addition to the smörgåsbord of cookies at Shannon’s party.  Just like every person has their place on this earth, my cookie had its place at the swap.  I liked what Elina said on her blog post best, “Nicole’s lemon almond cranberry crescents – such light, sophisticated little bites.”  Thanks Elina! That said, I’ll hold my pinky up, sip my tea and enjoy another one of my cookies (in addition to the rest of glorious treats I brought home).

Does anyone know any good hand stretching techniques?  My left thumb is getting achy from constantly using the left mouse-click on my laptop.  Maybe I need to do some hand yoga?

Namasté,
Nicole

***Guess what?  Vee is doing a series of interviews with bloggers about their take on both mental and physical health.  I had the honor of being her first interviewee!  You can check it out here.  Thank you again, Vee!  It was a blast!***

When I started reading healthy/lifestyle blogs, I noticed there were some foods that these bloggers could not stop raving about and could not stop eating.  Among these foods were oatmeal, kale, spinach, pumpkin, beans and nuts.  Nuts were put on just about anything and everything.  I saw them on oatmeal, yogurt, salads, in sandwiches, baked goods, soups, paninis, and stuffed in gourds.  Back then, I liked nuts.  But, I was always afraid of their high calorie content and the fact that I could inhale a pound of them in one sitting.  Now, I’ve grown to fully enjoy all kinds of nuts and have learned to consume them without abusing them.  I’ve become quite fond of raw almonds, walnuts, cashews and even the occasional peanut.  However, pecans didn’t play a role on my grocery shopping list.  I’m not sure why?  I think I just stuck with what I liked and never moved beyond that (remember, I am a creature of habit).  A few weeks ago, that all changed.

Marta from The Pecan Store (a division of The Green Valley Pecan Company) had emailed me asking if I would be interested in sampling some of their prized pecans.  At first, I wasn’t quite sure what to say.  After all, I wasn’t much of a pecan eater.  But once I had the chance to look at their website and learn all the facts about this powerful little nut, I was sold!  Within a few short days, my package arrived from Marta and inside was a half pound of pecan halves.  Wow!  I was shocked!  It was quite a hefty bag to sample, but I certainly wasn’t complaining.  Now, I just had to figure out what I was going to do with all these pecans…

Before I ripped open the bag to sample my little goodies, I took a peek at the informational brochure that came along with my package.  Honestly, I don’t know where I’ve been because I had no idea pecans were this amazing! Check it out:

The latest research from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirms pecans are one of the highest antioxidant-rich tree nuts and are ranked in the top category of all foods for antioxidants.

Pecans are a good source of fiber, providing 10% of the Daily Value for fiber in a single serving.

Scientific research at Loma Linda University shows the addition of pecans to the American Heart Association’s Step 1 diet lowered LDL (bad cholesterol) levels more than twice as much as the AHA Step 1 diet alone.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has acknowledged this and related research and approved the following qualified health claim: “Scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as pecans, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.”

After reading all those benefits, I was even more excited to try my pecans.  I can’t believe I’ve been missing out.  Thank you, Marta, for sending me these amazing nuts to sample.  And while I’m grateful for the half pound of pecans, your other products don’t look so bad either (hint, hint).  In fact, they look almost too good to be true: Butter Toffee Pecans, Dark Chocolate Pecan Bark, Arizona Pecan Brittle, Oliver Pecan Amaretto Pecan Honey Butter, San Saba Blackberry Pecan Preserves, Milk Chocolate Pecan Fudge and Oil Kinloch Plantation Pecan Oil.

The pecans were delicious!  They were softer in texture than an almond or walnut but still had a nice, subtle crunch.  They’re rich and buttery in taste and complement both sweet and savory dishes.  In fact, these pecans were so tasty that it didn’t take me too long to get through the entire bag.  Aside from the few handfuls I would grab out of the bag to munch on as a snack, I made some great creations.  Take a look…

Buzzy Spiced Banana Pumpkin Muffins

Sweet Sweet Potato with Cottage Cheese, Raisins, Honey and Pecans

Pumpkin Pie Cake with Dried Cranberries, Pecans and Agave Nectar (inspired by KathEats.com)

Thanksgiving Brussels Sprouts with Goat Cheese, Dried Cranberries, Chickpeas and Pecans

Sweet Potato Brownies with Coconut, Flaxseeds, Pecans and Walnuts (Say what?  Yup, you heard right.  Stay tuned for the recipe…)

After reviewing and consuming these pecans, I’ve decided that The Pecan Store sells a good nut and that pecans must now become a staple in my kitchen.  Like all nuts, the pecan is versatile.  You can put them on and in just about anything, and whatever you’re eating will taste that much better.  Plus, it’s a great way to get some more protein and healthy fat into your diet.  Pecans have always reminded me of the more decadent desserts such as German chocolate cake, butter pecan ice cream (one of my Dad’s faves), pecan pie, pecan turtle clusters and cinnamon pecan rolls.  Perhaps that’s the reason why they’ve been void from my nut repertoire? But now that I know I can add pecans to foods and still have them be healthy, I guess I was the nut for not trying them sooner!

What’s your favorite nut?  Do you like receiving food as gifts (ex: fruit baskets, Harry & David Gift Towers)?

Namasté,
Nicole

***Have you entered my earring giveaway yet?…***

So if you read yesterday’s post, you’ll know that I was recently given samples of POMx™ Iced Coffee to taste and review.  While I really enjoyed the flavor of the iced coffees, I don’t think I’ll be rushing to replace my morning cup of black coffee with the POMx™ Iced Coffee anytime soon.  Sorry! They’re just a tad too sweet for me to have so early on in the day as my first consumption of caffeine.  Plus, I’m already sweet enough (*sarcasm*)!  So what did I do with the rest of my samples, you ask?  Did I throw them away?  Did I give them to someone else to finish (that would be a bit gross)?  Did I just drink them for the heck of it?  No.  No.  And no!  Since Healthy Chow isn’t one for wasting things, I decided to make good use of my free samples versus just letting them sit and and take up precious space in my fridge.

So, you wanna know what I made…?

Well, if I wasn’t going to be drinking these little ‘wonderfuls’ as part of my breakfast, I figured the next best thing was to cook with them!  Because I love the rich and decadent taste of each of the flavors, I imagined they would be the perfect component in my breakfast foods.  Now, I’m not right a lot of the times, but when I am, I hit the nail exactly on the head (she pats herself on the back)!

Are you ready to find out yet…?

Blueberry Cheesecake Oatmeal POM-erized
Serves 1

• 1/2 cup of dry oats (you can use quick oats or old-fashioned style)
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 TSP of chia seeds (I used Greens Plus brand)
• 2 TBSP of nonfat cottage cheese
• 1 TBSP of POMx™ Vanilla flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/2 TBSP of chopped raw almonds
• small handful of blueberries, fresh or frozen

1) In a small pot, bring water to a rolling boil.  Once boiling, add the oats and chia seeds.  Stir to make sure the chia seeds are well-blended with the oats.  Reduce the heat to medium/medium-low and let cook for another 3 minutes.

2) Add your cottage cheese and iced coffee.  Stir.

3) Remove oatmeal from heat and pour into a bowl.  Top with blueberries and chopped almonds.

4) Eat with a spoon, but you won’t be able to stop thinking that this is a piece of blueberry cheesecake!

Yum-to-the-O!  This was incredible! The cottage cheese made the oatmeal fluffy (and cheesy) while the chia seeds added to the thickness.  The vanilla iced coffee sweetened this whole little number and the chewiness from the almonds made me think I was eating a graham cracker crust.  And of course, the blueberries accentuated the entire recipe.  If this breakfast was a whole cake, there wouldn’t be a slice left!

POM-errific Chocolate Banana French Toast
Serves 1

• 2 or 3 slices of bread (I used Trader Joe’s Sprouted Flourless Whole Wheat Berry Bread – 2 slices and 1 end)
• 1/4 cup of POMx™ Chocolate flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/3 cup of liquid egg whites
• few shakes of pumpkin pie spice
• few shakes of cinnamon
• few shakes of nutmeg
• pinch of brown sugar
• 1/2 of banana, sliced
• sprinkling of organic dried coconut (I used Woodstock Farms brand)
• sprinkling of cocoa powder

1) Mix the iced coffee, egg whites, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar in a shallow bowl.

2) Dip each slice of bread in the iced coffee/egg white mixture.  Let each piece absorb the mixture for about 1 minute.

3) Spray your frying pan or griddler (or in my kitchen, the C.G.) with cooking spray.  Turn your heat to medium.

4) Place your dipped slices of bread on the frying pan/griddler.  Heat each side for about 2-3 minutes or until the edges start turning that nice golden brown color.

5) Flip each piece of bread and cook for another couple of minutes.

6) Serve with sliced bananas, cocoa powder and dried coconut sprinkles.  Devour!

This french toast recipe was so tasty! There was just enough chocolate flavoring from the iced coffee to give this dish a unique flavor without it being overly sweet.  Coupled with the smashed banana slices (the banana was previously frozen) and the dried coconut, this french toast didn’t even need maple syrup.  I wish I had made more than the the 2.5 pieces I inhaled!

Oatmeal POM-tein Pancakes
Serves 1

• 1/3 cup of dry oats (you can use quick oats or old-fashioned style)
• 1/4 cup of POMx™ Vanilla flavored Iced Coffee
• 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1/2 TSP of baking soda
• few shakes of cinnamon
• few shakes of nutmeg
• 1/2 banana, sliced
• maple syrup or agave nectar

1) In a small bowl, mix together the oats, iced coffee, egg whites, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.

2) Pour the mixture into your blender.  Add your sliced banana.  Blend until you get the consistency of a thin batter.

3) Spray your frying pan or griddler (or C.G) with cooking spray.  Turn your heat to medium/medium-high.

4) Pour your batter onto your pan or griddler.  Let cook for 2-3 minutes.  Once the pancake can be moved without sticking, flip.  Cook the other side for another 2 minutes.

5) Serve with maple syrup or agave nectar.  Enjoy!

Ohemgee!  These protein-packed pancakes tasted more like banana bread than flapjacks.  They were so delicious and aromatic; I couldn’t believe this breakfast was actually healthy! The vanilla iced coffee and banana kept these pancakes moist and more than flavorful.  I’m glad no one was watching me eat these because I seriously was licking the plate clean.

POM-tastic Banana Coffee Soft Serve
Serves 1

• 1 frozen banana
• 2 TBSP of POMx Café au Lait flavored Iced Coffee

1) Place the  frozen banana and the iced coffee in your blender.  Blend until you get the consistency of soft serve.  You might need to stop the blender intermittently to scrape down the sides and then blend again.

2) Pour into a dish and savor your frosty treat!

Not only did I love this but Patrick seemed to be quite fond of it as well.  He kept asking me what was in his soft serve and couldn’t believe that it was just a frozen banana and a couple of splashes of iced coffee.  The coffee flavoring gave this frozen treat a more gourmet taste than the usual banana flavor.  While we ate this for dessert, it could definitely be a fun breakfast.  After all, it is just fruit and coffee!

When I first tried these iced coffee samples, my first reaction was that they were good.  They were a bit sweet for my liking, but they were definitely tasty.  However, after I began cooking with the iced coffees, I really fell in love.  I guess that goes to show that when life (or Blue) gives you slightly over sweet iced coffee, you need to make perfectly sweet breakfast!

Do you prefer cranberry sauce from the can (the kind where you can still see the indentations from the can) or do you prefer the homemade stuff?  Or are you like me and don’t like either?

***Don’t forget!  You still have until Friday, November 27th at 6pm ET to enter my jewelry giveaway.  After all, we could all use some sparkle in our lives…***

Namasté,
Nicole

***Happy Veterans Day to all of our troops and veterans.  Thank you for keeping us safe and for preserving our nation.***

***Thank you all for your well wishes and emails.  I’m feeling a little bit better today and thankfully, it wasn’t the flu of a pig-like nature.  I’m pretty sure it’s just the common cold.  But thank you so much for caring about Healthy Chow!***

Bet you’d never thought you’d hear those four words together, huh?  Well, I didn’t either until I decided after my previous posts on the kabocha/buttercup squash that my desire to cook more with this little blogosphere famous gourd just wasn’t satisfied yet.  And thus began my hunt for another recipe.  I saw many online for soups, purées and roasting and stuffing, which all sounded delicious, but didn’t really knock my socks off.  Finally, I stumbled upon a recipe for kabocha pie.  It looked just like a pumpkin pie (I guess it really is a pumpkin pie), but instead of it being sweet, it was savory.  I just had to give this a try.  I love quiches and pies, I love any kind of pumpkin and I love eating, so what other reason did I need to make this little yummy recipe? None.

That said, I began studying the recipe to see how I could ‘Healthy Chow-ify’ it.  When I say, ‘Healthy Chow-ify’, I mean make any substitutions that I’d prefer, do anything that would make the recipe simpler and use any ingredient that I have on hand versus having to buy new ones.  Why?  Because that’s how this girl rolls…

The kabocha pie recipe I found online called for a traditional pie crust.  Being that I’ve never made a real pie crust and those frozen ready-to-use ones sorta freak me out, I decided to make my own healthier version.  I figured since the kabocha would be pretty sturdy and not really watery/liquidy, the crust didn’t need to be too thick or ‘crusty’.  It just had to have some sort of a crunch and serve as a base for my beloved kabocha.  Sounds easy enough, right? Well, it was and it was actually one of the tastiest and easiest recipes I’ve made in quite some time.

Kabocha Tofu Zucchini Pie
Adapted from TheKitchn.com
Serves 6

For the crust:
From Bitsys Kitchen

• 1 3/4 cups of cooked brown rice (I used Lundberg’s Short Grain Brown Rice)
• 2 egg whites (or 1/3 cup of liquid egg whites)

1) Preheat the over to 350 degrees.

2) In a bowl, mix the cooked brown rice with the egg whites.  Then press the brown rice mixture into a pie plate that has been coated with cooking spray.

3) Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the rice starts getting crispy at the edges.

For the filling:

• 2 lbs. of kabocha, peeled, seeded, and cubed (about 4 cups)
• 1 TSP olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 TBSP of garlic, minced
• 12 oz. of  firm tofu, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 small-medium zucchini, sliced into half moon shapes
• 1 TBSP of fresh or 2 TSP of dried rosemary leaves, finely chopped
• few dashes of salt
• few dashes of white pepper
• few dashes of adobo powder
• few dashes of dried parsley
• 2 TBSP of cornstarch or arrowroot powder dissolved in 1 TBSP water (if necessary – I omitted this)
• 2 TBSP of agave nectar mixed with 1 TBSP of water (optional – I omitted this)

1) Keep the oven at 350 degrees after you’ve finished baking the crust.

2) Steam the squash until soft (about 15 minutes, you can do this while the crust is baking) and mash with a fork until you get the consistency of mashed potatoes.

3) In a large saucepan, begin heating the olive oil.  Add the onion and garlic and sauté for a few minutes or until the onion has softened and is translucent.

4) Add the steamed squash, tofu, zucchini, rosemary, adobo powder, dried parsley, salt, and white pepper and cook until heated through.  If you want your filling to be thicker, you can now add the dissolved arrowroot or cornstarch.

5) If you want a smoother texture for your filling, feel free to add the filling to a food processor or blender and purée.  I preferred a more rustic feel to my pie, so I left it as is.

6) Pour the filling into the pie crust.  Bake for 30 minutes or until the top of the pie starts to brown.  Optional: after 15 minutes in the oven, brush agave nectar and water mixture over the top of the pie to glaze.

7) Serve hot or warm.  But right out of the fridge isn’t so bad either!

Holy yum! This was ah.may.zing!  While this was supposed to be a savory dish, the kabocha kept this pie sweet, but definitely in a favorable way.  The tofu added some heft (and protein) to the recipe without adding any grease or an excess amount of fat.  I added the sliced zucchini because I wanted to add some vegetables to this recipe and because I thought it would taste and look good…and I was right on! However, the highlight of this dish had to be the rosemary.  While I used dried rosemary, the flavor was still quite apparent and paired ever so wonderfully with the kabocha.  It truly made the recipe!  I also used white pepper because I like the unique spice it brings to food and also because I didn’t want black specs in my pie (hey, presentation is key, right?).  The brown rice pie crust was a great complement to the kabocha tofu filling.  While a traditional pie crust would have been thicker and flakier and would have given the pie a more buttery taste, I liked the brown rice because it was heartier and gave the recipe an earthier feel.  And of course the brown rice was a healthier and lighter option.  The brown rice crust also held up quite well in the oven and didn’t break when I sliced the cooked pie.  Now that I know a brown rice crust is a great substitute for a savory pie, I can’t wait to do some more experimenting.  *Hint – look for more recipes like this on my blog in the near future

I’m so glad I decided to give another kabocha recipe a try.  This surely was a winner and came together quite easily.  The flavors from the various ingredients and seasonings played together so well and resulted in a great comfort food meal.  In addition, this pie was even better as a leftover as the flavors seemed to sink deeper into the kabocha overnight.  I almost forgot to mention that one slice was pretty filling (no pun intended) and was a nice quick dinner paired with a side salad.  Can you tell that I’m really digging this recipe?  Whenever I can find a recipe that’s healthy, inexpensive to make, delicious and unique, it’s truly a keeper. Now that’s truly a slice o’ heaven!

What’s your favorite spice or seasoning?  And how do you store your fresh herbs?  I love them but I can’t seem to use them fast enough before they go bad – any suggestions?

Namasté,
Nicole

I don’t know about you but when I’m at a coffee shop, local or franchise, and the aroma of the freshly brewed hits my nose, I immediately want a cup.  And as soon as I take my first sip, I have this undeniable desire for something sweet.  Perhaps it’s because I now drink my coffee black and I need that sugary taste to curb my craving? Maybe my stomach feels better when I eat something while drinking my black coffee?  Who knows?  Maybe I just like to eat? Yeah.  It’s definitely more than likely the latter answer.

But whether I’m at the coffee shop or I’m at home, the idea of sitting down with a big mug of joe is comforting to me.  And having a soft and chewy cookie, a buttery muffin or a thick and crumbly piece of coffee cake just accentuates that comfort.  However, I’m trying to cut down on my refined sugar and processed foods intake and that means those yummy baked goods I mentioned are not going to help my cause.  That said, I’ve decided to do some more baking.  With the remaining apples from that Sunday at Smolak Farms and my newest found love, the Omega³ Chia seeds, I decided to bake up something healthy and hearty that would not only give me the chance to do some more experimenting with the Chia seeds, but it would also give me something to dip into my coffee.

Image Credit – Susty.com

After perusing some recipe sites online and not being able to find something that met my standards (they are high, you know), I decided to make up my own recipe.  I know; hold onto your socks! I was a bit nervous since baking tends to need to be more exact than cooking.  But, with my apples being on their last leg and my longing to bake something with the Chia seeds, I knew it was go time.  Plus, if you don’t try, you can’t win, right? After much deliberating in the kitchen, I finally came up with a winner.

Hearty & Healthy Apple Oatmeal Bread with Raisins & Chia Seeds (aka Your Coffee’s Partner in Crime)
Makes 1 loaf, 10 servings

• 1 1/2 cups of oatmeal (old fashioned oats), uncooked
• 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 TSP of baking powder
• 1 1/2 TSP of cinnamon
• 1 TSP of pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup of agave nectar (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 2 egg whites (or 1/3 cup of egg whites)
• 1 TSP of Greens Plus Omega³ Chia seeds, mixed with 2 oz. of water
• 2 small-medium Granny Smith apples, unpeeled and diced (about 1 1/2 cups diced)
• 3 TBSP of raisins

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) Coat a 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with cooking spray.  Make sure to do a good job coating – get the corners and the entire sides of the pan.

3) In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: oatmeal, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.  Set aside.

4) In another bowl, combine your wet ingredients: agave nectar, almond milk, applesauce, egg whites and Chia seeds mixed in water.  Beat this mixture with a fork until blended.

5) Add your wet ingredients to your dry ingredients and mix just until the dry ingredients are moistened.  Please note that your batter will not be smooth; resist the urge to over mix.

6) Gently fold in your apples and raisins.

7) Spoon your batter into the greased loaf pan.  Try to make the batter as level as possible to ensure even cooking.

8 ) Bake for 60-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.

9) Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes.  Once cooled, carefully remove the bread from the pan and let sit on a wire rack to cool for an additional 5-10 minutes.

This was scrumptious! Once out of the oven, it felt like it took forever to cool.  The smell of the baking apples, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and agave nectar filled my condo and made me feel like Susie Homemaker.  There is truly something satisfying about the scent of your own homemade baked goods.  And while the aroma of the bread was enough to put me on cloud nine, the taste was even better.  The bread was moist, thick, soft and chewy.  While it wasn’t overly sweet, it was enough to fix my sugar craving.  The natural sweetness from the apples and raisins gave the bread a wholesome flavor, something which paired quite nicely with the oatmeal.  Because I used egg whites and Chia seeds instead of whole eggs, and applesauce instead of oil, this bread was not greasy at all and yet, there wasn’t a hint of dryness.  I would say that this recipe was like having a bowl of oats in a bread/bar form.  It was great as is, but equally as wonderful with a light schmear of buttery spread, a dollop of Greek yogurt or a thin layer of fruit preserve.

And not only did I think this bread recipe was pretty darn good, but my sister and husband both agreed.  I shared a piece with Michelle this past Saturday morning at Panera Bread after our yoga class.  She noted that it was dense, but that she favored that texture for a breakfast food.  She, too, liked the fact that it wasn’t overly sweetened by sugar and enjoyed the big chunks of apple and raisin pieces.  But she didn’t notice the Chia seeds until I told her what I used to make the bread.  I told her the Chia seeds were high in soluble fiber and she was digging that.  Michelle <3’s her fiber, if you know what I mean! Patrick couldn’t believe that this bread was actually healthy.  He didn’t miss the butter, whole eggs or sugar.  He said, “whatever you put in it, you need to remember and write it down because you need to make this recipe again!  This is so good!“  And like my black coffee, my days are always better when they’re paired with something sweet.

Do you prefer baking or cooking?  What is your hot beverage of choice? Do you drink it because you ‘need’ the caffeine or do you just like the ritual of it?

Namasté,
Nicole

When Allie posted on her blog a few of weeks ago (yes, this is a tad late – I originally wanted to post this that week I couldn’t post photos – sorry!) that she was the host of the Blogger Secret Ingredient and that her ingredient of choice was almond butter, I just knew I had to enter.  I really love all nut butters and feel like they can be put on anything.  Plus, if you’re a fan of the sweet/savory combo (I realize it’s sort of a ‘hate it’ or ‘love it’ type thang), then nut butters can basically be worked into anything and everything and will make your creations taste out of this world.  Consider working nut butters into your pasta dishes, spreading them on fruit and/or dried fruit, as a topping for your yogurt or hot cereal and my personal favorite, in a crazy sandwich or panini combination.

When I was a kid, I remember my uncle making this unusual sandwich and saying to myself, “is he nuts?“  For some reason, I was intrigued by his non-traditional sandwich making ways.  I then took a bite and I was instantly in love.  My uncle’s sandwich of cinnamon raisin toast with peanut butter and ham was unbelievable.  The saltiness of the ham was tamed by the sweetness of the cinnamon raisin bread and the peanut butter just tied the two together.  To this day, that is still one of my favorite sandwiches but I know not everyone ‘gets’ it.  But that just makes the sandwich that much better in my mind.

That said, I decided to come up with my own updated version of my uncle’s sandwich and enter it into Allie’s contest.  It was the perfect opportunity to recreate one of my favorite meals and to enter into my very first BSI contest.

My entry for BSI: Almond Butter was….

Creamy Nut Buttery Fig Panini

• 1 tortilla wrap (I used Joseph’s Flax Oatbran & Whole Wheat tortilla wrap)
• 1 TBSP of nut butter (I used Trader Joe’s Valencia Peanut Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds, but Almond Butter would work just as well.  Allie welcomed any type of nut butter in her contest)
• 1 TBSP of ricotta cheese (I used nonfat; you could use any kind)
• 1 slice of ham (I used Applegate Farms Slow Cooked Ham, but prosciutto would be swell, too)
• 1 dried fig, chopped into bite sized pieces (I used Trader Joe’s Turkish Smyrna Dried Figs)
• drizzle of agave nectar

Spread the nut butter onto the wrap, spread the ricotta, then layer the ham and finally, layer the fig pieces.  Drizzle the agave nectar over all and wrap like a burrito.  If you’d like, you could also fold your wrap in half like a quesadilla.  Place onto your indoor grill, panini maker or frying pan with a heavy object such as a filled tea kettle placed on top, and heat and press for a few minutes until everything starts oozing out!  Once cooked, cut in half (or in multiple wedges if using the quesadilla method) and savor the goodness!

The result?  Delicious! It tasted just like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, except much more sophisticated! The sweet and savory flavor was a bit more subtle than the sandwich my uncle created but more complex for the palate.  The dried figs and agave nectar complemented the peanut butter and ham and gave the entire panini a tart and mildly sweet taste.  The ricotta balanced it all out and added to the creaminess of the peanut butter.  I chose the Trader Joe’s Valencia Peanut Butter with Roasted Flaxseed because of it’s saltiness and the fact that there are chunks of peanut and flaxseeds which helped to add to the depth of the sandwich.

This panini was so easy to make and was quite filling.  I love simple panini/sandwiches that have a crazy little combination inside.  They’re fun to test out and even better when they end up tasting yummy like this one!  I want to thank my uncle for giving me the inspiration to make this wonderful sandwich and I want to thank Allie for giving me the outlet to revamp my family classic.  I had a great time brainstorming my idea for the contest, but I had an even better time tasting and eating my entry.  Come on now, nuthin’ is better than nut butter.

What is your favorite type of nut butter?  What is the most unusual meal/dish you’ve made with a nut butter?

Namasté,
Nicole

***Speaking of nuts, check out what my sister dressed up as for her office’s Halloween party/costume contest! Pretty scary, huh?***

Chuckie from Child’s Play!

A pie eating contest?

My sister’s nametag

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

No, not that kind of getting baked, silly!  I’m talking about apples! Remember how I said that I was slacking in the apple recipe making/baking department in comparison to some of my fellow food bloggers?  Well, slow and steady wins the race and I’m making a go at the apple recipe cooking finish line (if there is such a thing?).  Because I used only one apple in my previous recipe and still have a million (not a lie) left in my crisper, I wanted to find a dish that would call for the usage of multiple apples.  Hence, I scoured the internet and did hours of research (total lie) until I found this gem…

Getting Baked Apples
Adapted from SimplyRecipes.com
Serves 4

• 4 large good baking apples (I bucked the trend and used McIntosh apples, which is not recommended for baking)
• 1/4 cup of rolled oats
• 1 TBSP of evaporated cane juice (I used Florida Crystals, feel free to use dry sweetener of your choice)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• sprinkle of nutmeg
• 14 raw almonds, chopped (you could use pecans, walnuts or no nuts)
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped (dried apricots, raisins, dried figs would be good here, too)
• 1 TBSP of peanut butter (I used Trader Joe’s Valencia Peanut Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds)
• 3/4 cup boiling water

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Wash and dry your apples.  Using an apple corer or paring knife, remove the cores to 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apples.  Be careful not to cut all the way through to the bottom (I confess, I did this once)!  Then, use a paring knife to widen the cavity and a spoon to scoop out the seeds.  It’s a tad tricky at first, but you’ll get the hang of it.  Make the cavity about 3/4 inch to an inch wide.

2) In a small bowl, combine the oats, evaporated cane juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, almonds and dried cranberries.

3) Place the apples in an 8 x 8 baking dish.  Fill each apple with the mixture and then dot the top of each apple with 1/4 of the TBSP of peanut butter.

4) Pour the boiling water into the baking dish.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the apples can be easily pierced with a knife, but not mushy.  While the apples are baking, be sure to baste the apples with the dish juices (I repeated this three different times).

5) Serve hot!

These baked apples were like whoa! I couldn’t believe how good they tasted for something that was so simple to make.  I really liked the fact that even though the apples were stuffed with goodies like cinnamon, nutmeg and dried cranberries, the natural sweetness of my personally picked produce still shined through.  And, the McIntosh apples stood up quite well in the oven.  They came out tender and did not fall apart.  So take that, you online apple experts (whoever the heck you are)!  This is one of the best DPAABs (dessert-parading-around-as-breakfast) I’ve had in a long time.  While it’s quite similar in taste to the healthified fruit crisp I made a few weeks ago, the sheer fact that I was eating a whole piece of baked fruit made this dish stand out from anything else I have ever made.  Plus, having to eat this dessert/breakfast with a fork and knife made me feel as if I was having an entire meal, versus just a snack.

And because this is a healthy food blog and I like to give recipes my own little twist, I decided to substitute the brown sugar for evaporated cane juice and reduce the amount.  And to make the dish even heartier, I decided to add one of my favorite foods, oatmeal! Instead of dabbing the tops of the apples with butter, I used a natural peanut butter.  It’s less greasy and adds more flavor to the recipe.  The original recipe called for serving this dish with vanilla ice cream, which is a tremendous call.  However, I didn’t have any on hand (just cookies and cream ) and figured a dollop of thick greek yogurt would be the next best thing.  You could also drizzle some honey or agave nectar over the entire apple for some additional sweetness, but my apples didn’t require it.  Plus, I had some of the oatmeal mixture leftover, so I sprinkled some over the greek yogurt.  I’m not gonna lie, it was a stroke of genius on my behalf…just sayin’.

Who says eating food can’t get you high?

Random question: Is there a recipe or dish that you are intimidated to make?  Or, what is the one recipe you’ve been dying to make but just haven’t had the chance to do so?

Namasté,
Nicole