Super Smoothie

You don't realize how loud the blender is until you have a baby and they look at that strange machine like, "What the heck is that thing and why is it so horribly loud?!"

Little does she know that she has the potential to be even LOUDER than a blender full of ice. And she has proved that fact, too.

Y'all know I've always been a fan of smoothies for breakfast, lunch, snack, really anytime of the day. After having a baby that didn't weigh the 23 pounds that I had somehow gained when I was pregnant, I'm an even bigger fan of smoothies. They're filling, nutritious and simple to throw together quickly and drink while I'm loving on my sweet girl....or changing a diaper, cleaning up spit-up or collapsing on the couch after she goes down for a nap. You get the idea.



This smoothie will not disappoint. Made creamy with a frozen banana, made sweet with mango and almond extract and packed with flax (great for nursing moms!) and fresh spinach!



I adapted this recipe from skinnytaste.com and she mentioned she saw it in a Superfood Smoothie book (see here) that has peaked my interest! I'm always looking for yummy, new smoothie recipes!

Mango Banana Spinach Smoothie

Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com

Makes 1 Smoothie

 

Ingredients:

1/2 frozen banana

1/4 c. frozen (or fresh) mango

1/2 c. fresh spinach

1 tbsp. ground flax seeds

1 small splash (approx. 1 tsp.) almond extract

1 c. milk

1/2 c. ice

 

Blend all ingredients together until smooth and creamy.

 

Enjoy!

Laura

Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese

Supposedly all you have to do is cut a spaghetti squash in half, drizzle it with EVOO, roast it in a 375 degree oven for about an hour and you can pull a fork through the guts and make little spaghetti that are actually SQUASH! Say whaaattttt?

Y'all, it's true! I've tried it and it couldn't be simpler!

You can toss it with pasta sauce and add a chicken breast but how blasé would that be! (Blasé aka bland, boring, beneath your taste buds). But, if you do want to do that some night, I'm totally not judging.

Once you make SkinnyTaste's Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese, though, you will understand how blasé the first option sounds.

Strings of spaghetti squash, mixed with onions, spinach and made creamy with cups of cheddar cheese and sprinkled with Parmesan. And baked until bubbly. The hardest part of this recipe is cutting the spaghetti squash. (Seriously, does anyone else struggle with this? It's a job for my hubby.)

 

It's a low-fat, veggie-rich dish that tastes so decadent you'd never know it was skinny!

 

Move over mac and cheese, there's a new dish in town.

Laura

(P.S. That last line re: the mac and cheese makes me giggle.)

Pumpkin Pie Dip

Everything you love about Pumpkin Pie but without turning on the oven, making and pre-baking a crust and in a lot less time? Done and done.

A fluffy dip perfect for football watching, book club, or friends-giving!

And you don't have to tell anyone how simple and skinny it is!

I will most definitely be making this dip again, especially because it's so easy to have all these ingredients on hand for a quick dessert!

Served with sliced apples and graham crackers when around a group of people...a spoon is all you need if it's just you at home, on the couch, watching TV...not that I did that or anything...

 

 

Pumpkin Pie Dip

Adapted slightly from SkinnyTaste

Yield: A lot..this picture is only half the total amount!

Total Time: 5 min. plus chilling

 

Ingredients:

15 oz. can pumpkin

1 packet instant vanilla pudding mix

1 8 oz. container fat free cool whip

2/3 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Sliced apples and graham crackers for serving

 

Directions:

Mix pumpkin with pudding mix, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in cool whip. Chill until ready to serve!

 

Enjoy!

Laura

 



Apple Spiced Scones with Spiced Glaze

I know I've told y'all this before but in case you forgot or still find it really, really odd, I'll remind you.

My hubby loves scones.

Scones? Yes, scones.

My rock climbing, triathlon competing, double black diamond skiing husband enjoys a good scone.

Funny.

And I'll give you all one guess where I found another successful recipe, this time for a scone... you guessed it- SkinnyTaste!

I made SkinnyTaste's Delightful Apple Spiced Scones with Spiced Glaze and they were a hit! Instead of forming them into a circle, I made a long rectangle and cut them into small triangles before baking. This was great as I sent some of them into my husband's work and they were the perfect size to grab on the go! Not to mention, they served a lot more people than the 12 scones it originally makes.

These are a nice, light, Autumn-ish snack or breakfast and guilt-free, at that.

(Don't let the buttermilk addition sway you from not making these- just measure 1/2 tbsp. vinegar in a liquid measuring cup then fill the rest of the way to 1/2 cup with milk. Let stand 5 minutes and, voila, 1/2 c. buttermilk!)

Click here for the link to the original recipe from SkinnyTaste!

Enjoy!

Laura



Slow Cooked Apple Butter

When we first moved to Colorado, it took an extremely long time for my teaching license to transfer over from Texas. So, in that time, I picked up a lot of new hobbies, one being canning!

I first tried canning a small batch of jam and, although it was extremely frustrating because I had no idea what I was doing, it became something that I really look forward to doing!

Now every Autumn, I load up on fresh, scrumptious apples and make apple butter! It is a perfect introduction recipe to canning and I love that come December, the apple butter flavors are still perfectly canned and I have a load of stocking stuffers and small gifts to pass out to neighbors, family and friends!

But don't let the canning aspect deter you from this recipe- you absolutely don't have to can this! Just make it and keep it in the fridge for a delicious spread for your bread, a stir-in for your yogurt (delicious!!) or make it extra decadent and make a batch of my Apple Butter Rolls!

And- wouldn't you know- this recipe is from Skinnytaste! So it's guilt-free, too!



I quadrupled this recipe (10 lbs. of apples!) and picked up organic Gala apples from our local farmer's market grocery store at 99 cents a pound! What a deal.





Oh, did I mention that this is made in the SLOW COOKER? And makes your house smell amazing? Now you have to make it.

Slow Cooked Apple Butter

Recipe from Skinnytaste

Yield: 2 cups

 

Ingredients:
2.5 lbs (6 large) apples, peeled, cored, finely chopped (I used gala but honeycrisp or a mix of the two works well, too)
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Directions:

Place the apples in a slow cooker. Top with sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg and mix well.

Cover and cook on low 10 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.

Uncover and puree with an immersion blender. Cook on high uncovered 1-2 hours.

Spoon into sterile jars for canning, or containers and refrigerate.


Enjoy!
Laura

Football Menu

As if it even needs to be said, we spent last Saturday at home watching football!

There were 7 of us here for all the night games and I thought I'd share our menu to make your decision easier this upcoming weekend with all the options out there!

This menu was perfect for this amount of people and even had leftovers of the chicken which I have been using for tacos and salads for leftovers this week. Gotta love that.

We started out with chips and Skinny Taco Dip from Skinnytaste...
(although the hub doesn't like olives and I forgot to buy shredded lettuce so it was slightly different yet still delicious!)



Then I cooked a 3 lb. bag of chicken tenderloins at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, flipped them for about 10 minutes more.  I had coated them in a mixture of oil, water and buffalo chicken seasoning from the grocery store. (You could use any marinade or Frank's Red Hot Wing Sauce would be good, too!) And- voila!- boneless buffalo chicken tenders!

...all served with a side of Oven Fried Pickles from The Culinary Couple that were super yummy and so easy! I will definitely be making these again.

 

And we finished the night off with Pumpkin Spice Kisses, of course!

 

 

I loved that I didn't spend all day/night in the kitchen prepping food and actually got to enjoy football and our company! I made the cookies before Saturday and made the dip and prepped the chicken in the morning.

 

Also, it was great that I didn't do my typical overboard spread and had the perfect amount of food. Hope this makes your Saturday menu planning a little easier.

 

Now to decide what to make this weekend...

Laura



Beef and Barley Soup

I wish there was some way I could count the number of times that I've said, "Skinnytaste strikes again!"

She is just so, so good.

What I love is that I am making hearty, delicious meals, sides and desserts that I don't feel guilty about and don't feel like I'm skimping out on a good meal!

She's good. Again.

I'd never cooked with barley before but it was very easy to incorporate into the soup. I found it in the self-serve aisle at my grocery store where you can bag however much you need of different granola, nuts and grains. Perfect.

 

This is a great meal as the weather (hopefully) gets colder and an even better meal to make and freeze the leftovers since it is a broth/water based soup. Everybody loves a meal that leaves your freezer stocked up, as well!

 

Click here to visit Skinnytaste for this hearty soup recipe!

 

I might be Skinnytaste's #1 fan,

Laura

 

P.S. This soup is even better when served with these Rosemary Rolls...and evens out the healthy aspect of the soup...

Another Monday List

1. Jackpot. An entire list of pumpkin recipes that are all low-fat and healthy. Click here to feel like you've won the lottery. I'm most excited about the Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake Yogurt Cupcakes.

 

2. Apple season is just starting up and I am excited to hopefully do some canning this week! I'll keep you updated.

 

3. Free advice: keep one dish sponge in your dishwasher and one to use in the sink. Every time you run your dishwasher, switch them out as you unload your dishes. That way your sponges stay as germ-free as possible. And when one starts to bite the dust, switch it out with a new one!

 

4. Staying on the cleaning topic, after washing and drying your towels (bath, kitchen, etc.), and are putting them away, put them on the bottom of the stack in the closet or drawer. So, you are pulling your towels from the top of the pile and replacing the recently washed ones on the bottom. That way you aren't using the same few towels over and over again and wearing them out. I heard this from Martha (Stewart, if you aren't on a first name basis like we are) once.

 

5. I can't stop perusing Etsy for little girl headbands. How are there so many cute options? But what if I buy newborn size and she's born with a massive head (like my husband keeps telling me that he had) and none of them fit? These are the things that keep me up at night. Oh, and my top-heavy, kool-aid man-esque self (see photo for example).

 

via

 

Oh yaaaaaa (said like the kool-aid man, of course),

Laura

Blueberry Walnut Banana Bread

A delicious, healthy, fruit filled breakfast option AND it's low-fat? Yes, please.

I bought an insane amount of blueberries on sale (gotta love summer harvests!) and have a few recipes to share to use them up!

Enjoy Blueberry Walnut Banana Bread!

P.S. I made this bread for our camping trip and took this picture when I tried it before I left. I had planned to take a lot more for the blog on the trip but between the intense heat in the car and me not properly wrapping up the bread...it turned super mushy. So keep yours in the fridge...or not the 100 degree Utah heat. Lesson learned.

Blueberry Walnut Banana Bread

Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com

Makes one loaf

Prep Time: 15 min. Total Time: 1.5 hours, including cooling

Ingredients:

-3 ripe medium bananas, mashed

-1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce

-1 1/4 c. all purpose flour plus 1 tbsp. for coating blueberries

-3/4 tsp. baking soda

-1/4 tsp. salt

-2 tbsp. butter, softened

-1/2 c. light brown sugar

-2 large egg whites

-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

-1/2 cup chopped walnuts

-1/2-3/4 c. blueberries rinsed and dried

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8x5 loaf pan.

In a medium bowl, combine 1 1/4 c. all purpose flour, baking soda and salt with a wire whisk. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar with a mixer. Add egg whites, bananas, applesauce and vanilla and beat at medium speed until thick. Scrape down sides of bowl.

Add flour mixture and blend at low speed until combined.

In a small bowl, sprinkle 1 tbsp. of flour over blueberries and walnuts to lightly coat. Add to flour-banana mixture and fold in with spatula. Do not over mix.

Pour batter into loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!

Laura



Cheesy Jalapeno Popper Baked Chicken

I've said it before, and I'll say it again- Skinnytaste strikes again!

I'm trying to come out of my recipe rut and man, oh, man, did I ever. I made these Skinny Cheesy Jalapeno Popper Baked Chicken breasts last week and they were a hit! I used 3 chicken breasts sliced in half, so that's 6 pieces for you non mathematicians, and we enjoyed them for leftovers all week long!



It's the perfect combination of everything you love about jalapeno poppers- cream cheese, cheddar cheese, bacon and a kick from the jalapeno- in dinner form! A winning summer dinner!

These will definitely be making an appearance around this house soon!

Here is the link to the original recipe: Cheesy Jalapeno Popper Baked Chicken.

Enjoy!
Laura

Split Pea & Ham Soup

Remember when I was saying that you think you know a lot about your significant other and then you learn they like scones? Well, then you learn they like Split Pea and Ham soup.

What? That just sounded nasty...and mushy...and baby food-ish. Boy, was I wrong! It is none of those things. Well, maybe mushy, but only because it's soup and soup is pretty mushy.

Anyways, another one of my favorite blogs is Skinnytaste. It's full of healthy, scrumptious recipes all with their Weight Watcher points included. I don't use Weight Watchers but I love knowing that although a recipe may taste decadent or rich, it is low in calories and fat.

So, when my hubster told me that he is a fan of Split Pea and Ham soup, I went straight to Skinnytaste. Her recipe for Split Pea Soup with Ham Hock is anything but nasty, mushy and baby food-ish. It's creamy (without the use of cream), smooth and simple!

I always check our grocery store flyers for what meat is on sale that week to plan my recipes or to buy when it's cheap and throw it in the freezer. Last week, I bought a 10 lb. ham for $12! It's the little things, or 10 lb. things, in life!

After having ham and potatoes for dinner one night, I pulled the ham off of the ham hock and we had soup the next night! (With the PW Rosemary Rolls, of course!)

This recipe is also a great one to freeze and thaw out for a quick, easy dinner! You could even make one batch to have that night and use the ham hock again to make another batch to freeze. A quick tip for freezing soup: make sure to freeze it flat so it is easy to stack!

See here for the original recipe on Skinnytaste!

Enjoy!
Laura