Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Stevia Chips

We went to my brother in law & sister in law's house to watch the Super Bowl this year, where we ate from a nacho bar that they put together. It was a fun idea that everyone loved! They too are foodies & really enjoy cooking & trying new foods. Summertime at the cottage is full of some good eats!

For their nacho bar they shopped at a Mexican grocer & bought authentically seasoned & cooked shredded beef & pork with toppings like fresh guacamole, tomatoes & lettuce. It was simple & delicious. I wasn't quite sure what to bring, & then it hit me that we might want a little sweet to go with our savory.

I've been making fruit salsa for years from a recipe that I found in the classic cookbook from Better Homes & Gardens. I didn't stray too much from the original recipe, other then making half of the chips with Stevia instead of sugar, swapped the butter for coconut oil & I added whatever fruit we had in the fridge.

Recipe:

Serves 12 (8 chips & 1/2 cup salsa)

Salsa-

• 1 cup Strawberries, finely chopped
• 1 medium Orange, peeled & finely chopped
• 2 Kiwi, peeled & finely chopped
• 1/2 cup Raspberries, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup Blueberries, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup Yellow Bell Pepper, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice

Cinnamon Chips-

• 12 Flour Tortillas 
• 3 tablespoons Coconut Oil
• Cinnamon
• Stevia in the Raw

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients for salsa. Cover & refrigerate for 6-24 hours. 
• Preheat oven to 350 & melt coconut oil in a bowl.
• Brush coconut oil on each tortilla & cut into 8 wedges.
• Place wedges on baking sheet in a single layer & sprinkle with cinnamon & stevia.
• Bake for 10 minutes & repeat with remaining wedges. 
• Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 weeks.
• Enjoy chips with salsa!

This is a tasty & healthy snack that everyone enjoys. The recipe make a lot of salsa, but I just added the rest into my smoothies once we ran out of chips!

Maple Butternut Squash Soup

One of our most frequented restaurants is Panera, because I feel they have fresh & healthy options available for our whole family, although the mac & cheese is a favorite among the littles. This fall they offered a delicious butternut squash bisque that I loved & I knew I could make a lightened up version at home. In about 15 minutes, I had this:

Whenever it's available, I order an organic butternut squash through my local delivery service, Doorganics (post coming soon). They last quite a while in the fridge & when I have a craving for some warm soup on a cold day, this is my favorite lunch!

Recipe:

Serves 4 (1 cup / serving)

• 2 teaspoons Coconut Oil
• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 1 small Butternut Squash, peeled & cubed
• 2 cups Organic Chicken Stock (or Vegetable Stock for vegetarian)
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Nutmeg
• 10 Pecan Halves, chopped
• Maple Syrup

Directions:

• In a medium pot, melt coconut oil over medium heat. Add onions & saute until onions are translucent.
• Add butternut squash, broth, cinnamon, nutmeg & salt.
• Bring the pot to a boil and allow squash to cook until fork tender; about 10 minutes.
• Once squash is cooked, pour contents from pot into a blender or food processor & puree until smooth. 
• Pour soup into bowls, add a swirl of maple syrup & top with chopped pecans.
• Enjoy!

21DF: 1 Green, 1/2 Teaspoon & 1/4 Blue

Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas

Almost a year ago, I completed a round of the Whole 30... well, actually I did a Whole 29. On day 30 we were traveling to Vancouver for an Alaskan Cruise, and while the morning started out alright, I found it difficult to stay on this very strict Paleo inspired diet while living in airports all day & traveling with a 2 year old & a 4 year old. It was hard enough to learn short cuts that would get me started on this journey, but then to make sure I was consuming approved items while traveling was quite difficult. And, I needed some Starbucks!

Either way, the Whole 30 taught me a lot about food and how well my body & mind can function if I'm fueling it properly. From there I ventured into the world of Paleo more by purchasing a few cookbooks. My favorite is "The Paleo Kitchen" by Juli Bauer & George Bryant. Their Pulled Pork recipe has become my go to. It's simple & can be thrown together while I'm eating breakfast. Their recipe calls for you to rub the pork with a dry spice mixture and refrigerate, but I always forget & just end up throwing everything in the crock pot for the day. It still turns out delicious!

Recipe:

Serves 6

• 2.5 - 3 pounds Pork Tenderloin
•  1/4 cup Water
• 2 tablespoons Smoke Paprika
• 1 tablespoon Sea Salt
•  1 tablespoon Chili Powder
• 1 tablespoon Ground Cumin
• 1/2 tablespoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon Dried Ground Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• 12 Corn Tortillas or 6 Flour Tortillas
• Fresh Romaine, chopped
• Fresh Tomatoes, Chopped
• Shredded Cheese
• Greek Yogurt

Directions:

• Place pork tenderloin in slow cooker, pour water over top.
• Mix together seasonings & sprinkle on top of pork.
• Turn slow cooker to low & cook for 8-10 hours.
• When pork is done, pull apart with 2 forks.
• Place the pork in tortilla(s) & top with romaine, tomatoes, cheese & Greek yogurt.
• Enjoy!

 21DF - 1 Red, 1 Green, 1 Yellow, 1/2 Blue

"Skinny" Shrimp Scampi with Cherry Tomatoes & Zoodles

When I'm planning our dinners for the week, I try to include a variety of proteins, not just a ton of chicken. I hope this helps our boys have an expanded pallet as they grow. Our older son loves shrimp & our younger one really enjoys "shish" (a.k.a. fish). I made salmon not that long ago, and the next day he told Grandma that we ate our fish & had to get new ones. Our Beta Fish! I'd love to know all of the thoughts that go on in his head! Either way, they always have to try what we make for dinner. I'm certainly not a short order cook.

A few weeks ago I bought several pounds of wild-caught shrimp when it was on sale, & then I forgot about it. While cleaning out the freezer, I figured I would use a pound to make something delicious - so Shrimp Scampi it is! One of my favorite ways to use zucchini is to make "Zoodles". My husband's actually not opposed to them, after almost passing them up. I have a simple spiralizer that I bought at Bed, Bath & Beyond for under $15 & it works great.

Recipe:

Serves 2 Adults & 2 Kids

Shrimp-

• 1 pound Wild-Caught Shrimp, peeled & deveined
• 2 teaspoons Avocado Oil
• Juice of 1 Lemon
• Salt & Pepper

Vegetables-

• 2 Zucchinis, spiralized
• 1/2 pint Cherry Tomatoes
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons Avocado Oil
• Salt & Pepper

Directions:

• Add oil to one pan & heat over medium heat. Add shrimp & fresh lemon juice. Flip shrimp after about 4 minutes, and continue to cook until no longer translucent. Season with salt & pepper.
• At the same time in another pan, add the oil & garlic over medium-high heat. Add zoodles & tomatoes & cook until soft & tomatoes almost pop when stirred, approximately 5-7 minutes. Season with salt & pepper.
• Plate the zoodles & tomatoes & top with shrimp. 
• Enjoy!
 

21DF - 2 Greens, 1 Red, 1 teaspoon.

Deconstructed Energy Balls

We've changed our eating habits quite a bit, especially since we've had our boys, but there's one thing I just can't give up: sweets!

They're my weakness, specifically baked goods, but nothing about a giant, warm cookie is healthy. So I've searched for alternatives to satisfy my sweet tooth without going overboard!

You may have seen recipes on Pinterest for "energy balls". We all love this idea in our house, but when I make a whole batch, I can't stop at one, and I defeat the purpose of a healthy treat. I've since realized that if I use these ingredients mixed in a single serving bowl, I won't break the calorie bank & exceed the sugar limit.

Recipe:

Serves 1

• 2 tablespoons Old Fashioned Oats
• 2 teaspoons Natural Peanut Butter (I love Costco's pb)
• 1/2 teaspoon Raw Honey
• 1 tablespoon Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
• 1 teaspoon Miniature Chocolate Chips

 Directions:

• Combine oats & peanut butter in a small bowl (like that cute one above from Target). 
• Drizzle honey on top & sprinkle with coconut & chocolate chips.
• Enjoy! 

21DF - 1/4 yellow, 3 Teaspoons, honey from "coffee bar", 1/2 Blue

Balsamic Glazed Steaks with Sauteed Maple Brussles Sprouts

Don't get me wrong, I love a grilled steak, but it's a little difficult to grill when the temperature is in the teens here in the evening. And when it gets dark at 5:30, it's tough to tell the how done your meat is. Lucky for me (& you), the broiler in our oven isn't too shabby when it comes to fulfilling a craving for steak!

 

What I love about this meal is that it's quick, easy, and requires only a few ingredients.

Recipe:

Serves 2 adults & 2 kids

Steaks-

• 3 - 4oz. Sirloin Steaks
• Salt & Pepper
• Cooking Spray

Sprouts-

• 1 pound Brussels Sprouts (approximately 20)
• Avocado Oil
• 3 teaspoons Maple Syrup

Sauce-

• Balsamic Vinegar

 Directions:

• Preheat broiler.
• Spray broiler pan with cooking spray. Season both sides of each steak with salt & pepper.
• Cook steaks for about 5 minutes on each side; more or less according to your preference and steak thickness.
• Meanwhile, add 2 teaspoons avocado oil to a pan. Cut the ends off Brussels sprouts, and remove the outside leaves. Slice in half and add to pan, sautee until slightly crispy and brown. Add a little water and maple syrup. Place a top on the pan and steam for 3 minutes. 
• In a sauce pan add balsamic vinegar and reduce until thick.
• When steaks & sprouts are done, place them on a plate and drizzle the balsamic glaze. 

21DF - 1 Red, 1 Green

Open-Faced Ham & Egg Sandwich

A few years ago, my mom, husband & I decided to venture into the world of "Backyard Chickens". Well, not so much backyard, since combined we have over 7 acres in the city (my mom lives in our backyard), but none the less, we do not have a chicken farm. We started with a dozen chicks since we were told that some may not make it past the teenager stage (rebels). We did lose one chicken early on, but we also experienced something we were not expecting... 2 of our chicks "turned into" ROOSTERS!

Now this is particularly saddening for me, because my chicken, a Golden Wyandotte, who I respectively named Goldie Hen (harhar!) was one of the roosters. Lucky for them, one of my husband's co-worker's sons was starting a chicken farm. So after many *hilarious* attempts to lure these cocky & noisy roosters into a cat carrier, they were safely taken to their new home where I'm sure they have produced a fine brood of chicks!

We only have 2 left from the original dozen & we added 6 more chicks 2 years ago, we lost 1 from this batch, leaving us with 7 hens total. They are free-range (just ask the neighbors...), and eat lots of yummy food, which we believe is what makes their eggs taste so good.

So why did I tell you all of this? Well, on a good day we'll get an egg from each hen, and typically at least 5 a day. We love to eat LOTS of fresh eggs! Which leads me to this simple recipe:

Recipe

Serves 1

• 1 slice Ezekiel Bread, Toasted
• 1 Farm Fresh Egg
• 3 slices Nitrate-Free Ham

Directions

• While your bread is toasting, spray pan with cooking spray & fry your egg on half of the pan for a few minutes, depending on your yolk preference.
• Add the slices of ham to the other half of the pan to warm & brown slightly.
• Place the ham on top of the toast & the egg on top of the ham.
• Enjoy!

And I'll leave you with this handsome fella...

 

21DF - 1 Yellow, 1 Red.