Double Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

My friend Krystal is about to welcome her second child in this world, and with a virtual, cupcake-themed baby shower being thrown in her honor, I couldn't resist joining in the fun. You may remember Krystal's first baby shower... not all that long ago! For that shower, I made tostones. As much fun as that was, dessert of any kind is my true calling. Though I'm still too busy to come back to blogging regularly, I stole a few minutes here and there to make this one happen.
I've been working on renewing my commitment to clean eating lately, and wanted to try coming up with a clean but still delicious cupcake. I've loved this cream cheese frosting recipe for years, and have been waiting for just the right time to share it here. I paired it with an easy chocolate cupcake filled with chocolate ganache and strawberries. Sinful and decadent, in a clean eating sort of way. Congratulations, Krystal, I hope you enjoy these cupcakes, and I can't wait to "meet" your new little one! See the rest of the baby shower at Eva Bakes

Double Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

Source: Adapted from The Way to His Heart, Veronica's Cornucopia, and Clean Eating Magazine, Sept/Oct 2009
Yield: 12 Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup cocoa powder (dutch-processed is preferred)
2/3 cup sucanat
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 egg whites
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup water

For the filling:
1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate
1/2 cup almond milk (or whatever milk/cream you use)
12 strawberries, chopped (you will need fewer if they are large)

For the frosting:
1 cup low-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1-2 tablespoons water (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare a cupcake pan with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and cocoa powder. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sucanat, vanilla, vinegar, coconut oil, egg whites, applesauce, and water.
4. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. 
5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 cupcake liners.
6. Bake cupcakes for 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool in the pan 10 minutes, then remove and place on a wire rack to finish cooling.
7. When cupcakes have cooled, prepare the ganache.  Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl.  Add the milk to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.  Pour milk over chocolate and let sit 5 minutes.  Slowly begin stirring the chocolate-milk mixture until it is completely smooth. 
8. To prepare the frosting, add the cream cheese, honey, cocoa powder, and cinnamon to a medium bowl.  Whisk or stir until smooth.  Add water as necessary to attain desired consistency.
9. To assemble cupcakes, remove center portion of cupcake.  Fill with strawberries and a dollop of ganache.  Top with cream cheese frosting. 

Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

The turn to autumn is one of my favorite things about living in New England. The air turns crisp, the leaves turn beautiful orange, yellow, and red hues, football starts up (go Pats!), and I can finally use the oven again without complaints that it's too hot. My husband's sweet tooth has suddenly come alive, as he has recently requested both caramel brownies and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Life has been a little crazy (evident by the tumbleweeds rolling through this blog), but I jumped at the chance to make cookies. They are usually pretty quick to throw together and would curb my yearning to get back to baking. I went straight to my blog to pull up the cookie recipe, only to discover it wasn't there. When I thought about it, I could barely remember ever having made pumpkin cookies before.


I pulled up my trust excel spreadsheet of recipes, and right there was a recipe for soft pumpkin cookies, rated five stars - my highest rating. I'm not sure why I never blogged about them, but I'm so happy to have 'found' them again. I threw in a few tweaks and my usual substitutions, and the result was a soft, but sturdy, cookie that is perfect for fall!

Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Source: Adapted from Joy the Baker and Big Fat Cookies
Yield: about 2 dozen cookies

 

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice
• 1/2 cup (one stick) butter, at room temperature**
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

**I actually make this with Earth Balance butter sticks and it worked well.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Stir the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until lightened in color, about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix in the eggs, one at a time. Add the pumpkin and vanilla, mixing just until blended. Slowly add the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chocolate chips and cranberries.
4. Scoop mounds of dough, roughly 2 tablespoons each, onto lined sheets.  Space cookies at least 2 1/2 inches apart.
5. Bake cookies about 14 minutes, until the edges are just lightly brown. Cool cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transfering to a wire rack to cool completely.  The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

No-Bake Mint Brownies

Clean eating has changed my life in many ways, but one particular change was definitely unexpected. Growing up, I was never a huge fan of chocolate, and most certainly wanted nothing to do with dark chocolate. I viewed chocolate simply as a vehicle for delivery of other delicious things such as mint (my favorite) or peanut butter filling, almonds, raisins... you get the picture.

As clean eating adjusted my taste buds, I came to have an appreciation for a nice high quality piece of dark chocolate. While it still wouldn't be the first thing I reach for, I do enjoy the smooth, velvety texture and deep, complex flavors. (Just don't ask me to eat cacao nibs. I'm not THAT appreciative yet!)

Naturally, brownies were never something I would go nuts for, but when I stumbled on this recipe for no-bake mint brownies, I just had to try them. Clean dessert + mint + quick to prepare = a happy balanced baker who doesn't actually have to bake! I was so in love with these after making them, that I went out the next day for a jumbo bag of dates so I could make more. These brownies are super dense and fudgy, and I love the little crunch from the bits of walnut.

 I found that the amounts in the original recipe didn't fill an 8x8 pan without being paper thin, so I scaled up the whole recipe to yield a decent sized brownie.

No-Bake Mint Brownies

Source: Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie via Eva Bakes
Yield: 16 brownies

Ingredients

• 2 cups walnuts 
• 2 and 1/2 cups pitted dates (make sure to use whole, not chopped dates) 
• 2 tsps vanilla extract 
• ½ cup cocoa powder 
• 10 drops of pure peppermint extract (you can add more or less if you like, I felt like this was a good middle-of-the-road amount) 
• Chocolate chips or cacao nibs (optional) 
• Dash of salt (optional but recommended)

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients, using a food processor or blender. Press evenly into an 8x8 inch pan. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 min to help firm up the brownies for slicing. Slice into 16 squares and serve. I stored these in the refrigerator because I liked them chilled!

Spiced Chicken Stir-fry with Ginger, Cilantro, and Lime

Stir-fry dinners are wonderful to have in your arsenal. They can be made quickly, and, if you ask me, are downright delicious for something that takes such  minimal effort. We've made other stir-fries before, but variation is key in our house so I'm always willing to try something new.
This version was an easy choice because most of these ingredients are ones that I always have on hand - ginger is kept in the freezer wrapped in foil, scallions are chopped and bagged and kept in the freezer, and limes and cilantro are standby ingredients in our fridge.  Mirin, however, is something I don't keep on hand since I have trouble finding it.  I substituted some dry sherry cooking wine in place of the mirin and it worked well. We loved this dish for the depth of flavor and how quickly it came together.

Spiced Chicken Stir-fry with Ginger, Cilantro, and Lime

Source: Slightly adapted from Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations
Yield: Serves 2

 Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts, sliced into 2-bite pieces
• Spices: 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp dried red pepper flakes, 1 tsp ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp chili powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• Juice of 1/2 of a lime
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp mirin
• 1/2 cup chicken broth 
• small head of broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 2 scallions, chopped
• Handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
• cooked brown rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Toss chicken with the spices and half of the lime juice.
2. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan or wok over high heat.
3. Add the chicken and stir fry until almost cooked through.
4. Lower the heat to medium high and add the garlic and ginger; saute 1 minute.
5. Add broccoli, soy sauce, mirin, chicken broth, and the rest of the lime juice.  Bring to a low simmer, cooking until the broccoli is crisp-tender.
6. Remove from heat and stir in the scallions and cilantro.  Serve over brown rice.

Salsa Verde Crockpot Chicken Tacos

Since my last 6 posts have been decadent desserts, I guess it's time to give you a delicious, clean, easy meal to get back on track. This is another great recipe where you let the crockpot do most of the work. Slow cooking the chicken with tomatillo salsa gives it great flavor without drying it out. I chose to make my own salsa verde and corn tortillas, but you can also use store bought to make this dish even easier.

We loved the combination of flavors here - bright red onion, creamy cojita cheese, earthy black beans, and of course the wonderful salsa verde. It's a new favorite of ours!

Salsa Verde Crockpot Chicken Tacos

Source: Slightly adapted from The Novice Chef
Yield: 4 servings





Ingredients:

• 2 pounds chicken breasts
• 3 cups medium salsa verde, divided (recipe follows)
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

For the tacos

• 8-10 corn tortillas
• 1 can black beans
• 1 jalapeno, stem removed (remove seeds if you don't like the heat)
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese
• lime, for squeezing on top

Directions:

1. Whisk together 1 cup salsa verde, chicken broth and garlic salt in crockpot. Add chicken breasts and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
   
2. Combine black beans (do not rinse/drain) and jalapeno in a small sauce pan. Heat on medium-low until beans are cooked and pepper has softened, about 8-10 minuted. Puree in a food processor or blender.
   
3. Remove chicken from crockpot and discard remaining liquid. Shred chicken with two forks and place in a medium bowl. (You can also shred chicken by beating on low spead in a stand mixer for about 30 seconds - works great and is very quick!) Add remaining 2 cups salsa verde and chopped cilantro to chicken. Mix to combine.
   
4. Fill tortillas with a scoop of black beans, a scoop of chicken, a few slices of red onion, a healthy scoop of crumbled cotija cheese and a squeeze of lime!

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
Source: slightly adapted from Rick Bayless
Yield: about 3 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds (12 medium) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
• Fresh hot green chiles to taste (3 serranos or 3 jalapenos), stemmed
• 6 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 cup fresh cilantro (thick bottom stems cut off), roughly chopped
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 small white onion, finely chopped
• Salt

Directions:
Roast the tomatillos, chile(s) and garlic on a rimmed baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler, until blotchy black and softening (they’ll be turning from lime green to olive), about 5 minutes. Flip them over and roast the other side. Cool, then transfer everything to a blender, including all the delicious juice the tomatillos have exuded during roasting. Add the cilantro and water, then blend to a coarse puree. Scoop into a serving dish. Rinse the onion under cold water, then shake to remove excess moisture. Stir into the salsa and season with salt, usually 1 teaspoon.

Cranberry Orange Pecan Cookies

Every fall I stock up on fresh cranberries. It's the only time of year you can get them, and I love to bake with them. Last fall I got 6 or 7 bags and tossed them in the freezer.

Guess what? They are all still there.

I never got around to doing anything with them over the winter (for shame), so I figured there's no time like the present!

These cookies are soft, which I love. They are sweet enough to balance the tart cranberries, and have a little hint of citrus from the orange zest. Pecans add the perfect crunch. Still have some cranberries kicking around in your freezer? Make these today!

Cranberry Orange Pecan Cookies

Source: Adapted from Short and Sweets
Yield: 30 cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegan butter
• 3/4 cup evaporated cane juice
• 1/2 cup sucanat
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• zest from one medium orange
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 cups cranberries, chopped or whole

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease or line cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Add the orange juice and zest. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla extract.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Slowly mix flour into the batter. Add the pecans and cranberries, mix until just combined.
4. Using a spoon and your fingers or a cookie scoop, form rough balls of dough (approximately 2 tablespoons) and place them on your prepared cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 12-17 minutes, until the edges are slightly brown. Let cookies cool on the sheet for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely

Cheesecake-Style Lime Squares

My husband is not a sweets guy. Once in a while he'll eat cheesecake, caramel brownies, and he loves peanut butter ice cream, but other than that, you are hard pressed to get him to eat dessert. When the latest Clean Eating magazine arrived in the mail, I saw this recipe for cheesecake style lime squares and knew they would be right up his alley. Since they were from CE, I knew they wouldn't be too sweet. And lime + cheesecake is a match made in his heaven.



These definitely lived up to our expectations, and he loved them! The lime adds a bright flavor to the tangy cheesecake base, and I was right - they aren't too sweet. Just perfect for us.

Cheesecake-Style Lime Squares

Source: Slightly adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, June 2012, page 39
Yield: 16 squares
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes, plus 8 hours to chill

 

Ingredients

• 14 all natural whole-wheat graham cracker squares (or 7 rectangular sheets)
• 3 tablespoons organic unsalted butter, melted
• 8 ounces light cream cheese
• 1 cup low-fat sour cream (or plain greek yogurt)
• 1/2 cup organic evaporated cane juice
• 1 tablespoon lime zest (from about 2 limes), plus additional for garnish
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 1 large egg

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 inch square baking dish with parchment paper, leaving 2 to 3 inches hanging over 2 opposing sides.
2. In a food processor, process graham crackers into fine crumbs.  With machine running, pour butter through feed tube and process until just combined, 2 to 3 seconds.  Transfer mixture to baking dish and press into bottom with your hands to form an even layer.  Bake until edges are very light brown, about 9 minutes.  Transfer to wire rack. 
3. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.  Wipe out food processor  and add cream cheese and sour cream or yogurt; process until smooth, about 1 minute.  Add cane juice and lime zest and juice.  Pulse, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, until combined.  Add egg and pulse until just combined.  Spread mixtures evenly over top of graham cracker crust and bake until edges are just set and center is still moist and slightly jiggly, 38 to 40 minutes. 
4. Transfer to wire rack and let rest for 10 minutes.  Run a thin knife along the edges of dish to loosen.  Let cool to room temperature.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.  Transfer cheesecake to cutting board by lifting edges of parchment.  Garnish with additional lime zest and slice into 16 squares.  Serve chilled.  After slicing, squares will keep refrigerated for 1 day. 

Guacamole

Along with pico de gallo and fresh tomatillo salsa (which I hope to share someday!), this is another favorite recipe to come from my husband's family. It's so easy to throw together, and with avocados on sale for $1 each the past few weeks, we've been enjoying it every weekend. There are several schools of thought when it comes to what belongs in guacamole, but I definitely love the simplistic approach of this recipe from my husband's aunt, Ethel.

Creamy avocados in harmony with lime and cilantro make this a perfect snack for your next party, or any day!

Guacamole

Source: Tia Ethel
Yield: About 2 cups
Preparation time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 avocados
• 2 limes
• 3/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
• pinch salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Add the flesh from the avocados to a large bowl or food processor. Set aside one or two of the pits; we'll add them back at the end to keep the guacamole from browning.
2. Add juice of 2 limes, cilantro, garlic powder (if using), and a pinch of salt to the bowl.
3. Blend with an immersion blender or process in the food processor, until well blended and no large pieces of avocado are visible.
4. Check for taste; add more salt and blend again if needed. I like to taste the guacamole using the chips that it will be served with, since those are often salty on their own.
5. Add reserved avocado pits and push them into the guacamole.  Serve immediately, or cover tightly with plastic wrap pressed against the guacamole and chill in the refrigerator until serving. (I prefer it slightly chilled, so I like to do this.)

Chipotle Salsa Turkey Burgers

Whew! It's time to dust off the cobwebs around here. We've had a busy summer and I took some time to focus on my family, friends, and home. I'm excited to get back to blogging again, especially with fall just around the corner and a new season of Glee and Glee Cupcakes!

Part of the reason for the slow down around here is that I wasn't really making new recipes. To keep things simple in the kitchen, I fell back on things I've made before and knew we loved. This recipe is one that I made many times over this summer. The inspiration came one day when there were a few odd ingredients in the fridge that needed to be used up. This is one of those recipes that, now, I can skip the recipe card and go based on memory - and I love that!

These turkey burgers are a great choice when you are looking for something different than your run-of-the-mill burgers. The chipotle and adobo sauce provide a great smokiness, and the red onion is bright punch of flavor. We love them!

Chipotle Salsa Turkey Burgers

Yield: Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey


• 1 chipotle pepper with about 1 tablespoon adobo sauce


• 1/3 cup salsa


• 1/2 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs


• 1/3 cup red onion, diced


• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro


• juice from one large lime, divided


• 2 teaspoons chili or taco seasoning


• 1/2 an avocado


• burger buns, lettuce, sliced tomato, cheese, and whatever else you like to put on burgers

Instructions

1. De-seed and mince the chipotle pepper.


2. Add all ingredients except avocado and half of the lime juice to a large bowl.


3. Mix gently just until thoroughly combined; do not over-work.


4. Shape into four equal burgers. Grill over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes per side, or until no longer pink in the center.


5. Mix avocado and reserved half of the lime juice in a small bowl. Spread avocado mixture on burger bun. Build the burger with your favorite toppings, and enjoy!

Good Morning Muffins

Long ago, I learned an important kitchen lesson: read the recipe in its entirety before you even think about making it. Too many times before that, I'd only have skimmed the ingredient list, then go to make the recipe and realize I need an overnight rest/marinade, or the final product needs 4 hours to set afterwards, or some other hidden time requirement. I'm much better, now, at properly preparing myself for a recipe. Still, I sometimes get ahead of myself.

Last Saturday I was happily pouring over a new baking book, when I saw this muffin recipe. I thought to myself, "perfect! I'll prep the ingredients tonight and bake in the morning." I often do that, these days, since dragging out containers of dry ingredients and measuring them is a lot easier when our son is asleep, than when he is awake. Later that evening, when I set out to combine dry ingredients and locate all the others and arrange them in an easy-to-grab place in the fridge, I realize there was very little prep work that could be done. Sure, I could throw together the few dry ingredients, but those comprised not even a third of the ingredient list - not a huge time saver. I didn't want to grate the zucchini or chop the apple ahead of time, so I conceded and left all the prep work for Sunday morning.

As I made the muffins on Sunday morning, I wondered if all this work (in itself not much, but more than any other muffin recipe I've made) would be worth it. I got my answer shortly after removing these glorious muffins from the oven. Absolutely - yes! I was so excited to try one, I didn't even wait for them to properly cool. These quickly became my new favorite muffin, and I can't wait to make them again. The add-ins play so well together, against the almost nutty whole wheat muffin base, with just the right hint of cinnamon to round it out.

These lightly sweetened muffins are packed with delicious add-ins and make a fabulous breakfast!

Good Morning Muffins

Source: Slightly adapted from Flour, by Joanne Chang

Yield: 12 muffins

Preparation time: 20 min

Cook time: 45 min

Total time: 1 hour, 5 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (40 grams) wheat or oat bran
• 1/2 cup (120 grams) hot water
• 1 small zucchini, grated (about 1 1/2 cups packed or 200 grams)
• 1/2 cup (80 grams) raisins
• 1/2 cup (50 grams) pecan halves, chopped and toasted
• 1/2 cup (60 grams) unsweetened flaked coconut
• 1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped (about 1 cup or 120 grams)
• 2/3 cup (150 grams) packed light brown sugar
• 3 eggs (or 3 Tablespoons ground flax seed with 9 tablespoons water)
• 3/4 cup (150 grams) canola or safflower oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups (210 grams) whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 cup (75 grams) old fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Prepare a muffin tin with nonstick baking spray or paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the bran and hot water until the bran in completely moistened. Add zucchini, raisins, pecans, coconut, apple; stir until well mixed.
3. If you are using eggs: Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat sugar and eggs on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, until the mixture thickens and lightens. (This will take 6-8 minutes with a hand-held mixer). On low speed, drizzle in oil, slowly, and vanilla. Adding it slowly is key to maintain the air you have beaten into the eggs. If you are using flax seed/water as an egg substitute: add sugar, flax seed, water, oil and vanilla to a large bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined.
4. In a medium bowl, stir together oats, flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, folding carefully with a spatula until well combined. Add the bran mixture and fold until well combined. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, dividing it evenly and filling the cups to the rim.
5. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, or until muffins are lightly brown on top and spring back when pressed in the middle with a fingertip. Let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes, then remove muffins from pan to finish cooling.
6. The muffins taste best the day they are made, but can be stored in an airtight container at room tempurature for up to 3 days. They can be frozen up to a week, if wrapped tightly in plastic wrap.

Turkey and Chickpea Burgers

I can't believe it's been almost two years since I started eating clean. (For anyone that's new, take a look back at my introduction to clean eating post.) I haven't been perfect - pregnancy did have an effect on my diet, and I did the best that I could during the few months when not much seemed appetizing. Obviously pregnancy throws a kink in one's weigh loss plans, but I am happy to say that renewing my commitment to eating clean after the birth of our son helped me reach my pre-pregnancy weight. I feel great and am happy to be back on track towards reaching my ideal weight.  Sure, I still bake some decadent desserts and a few non-clean meals and side dishes, but overall, adapting recipes to be a almost, if not totally, clean is second nature. I don't miss much about full fat and over processed foods. I rarely enter the aisles at the grocery store; most of my time is spend in the produce section! I have come to a place where clean eating is easy. It's our lifestyle now, and I am so happy to have over 100 clean recipes on this blog to share with you! 



One of my favorite recipes sources is still, two years later, Clean Eating Magazine. I'm not with it enough to know when the next issue is supposed to arrive in the mail, so when it does, it's like Christmas. I have to flip through right away, and check out the newest ideas.  Spring has finally made its way to New England, and that means only one thing to my husband: it's grilling time!  I went back through some old issues for any recipes that were overlooked, and rediscovered this recipe for turkey and chickpea burgers.

Turkey burgers are my favorite, and this is a great twist on them. These are quick to throw together and taste great!

Turkey and Chickpea Burgers

Source: Slightly adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, Jan/Feb 2009
Yield: Serves 5
Preparation time: 10 min
Total time: 25 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1 can chickpeas (15 oz)
• 1/2 cup scallions, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin (we use coriander)
• 1 teaspoon fresh black ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
• 1 pound ground turkey breast
• red onion, tomato, lettuce, and buns, for serving

Instructions

1. In a food processor, combine chickpeas, scallions, cumin, pepper, salt and worchestershire sauce. Pulse until smooth.
2. Transfer chickpea mixture to a large bowl. Add ground turkey and mix until well combined.
3. Divide mixture into 5 equal portions and shape into a patty. Grill burgers over medium heat, about 5 minutes per side, until cooked through.
4. Serve burgers on buns with your favorite burger toppings.

One Pot Meal: Baked Chicken

One pot meals are a thing of wonder.  This especially rings true for a messy cook such as myself. Despite the fact that we have somewhere on the order of four times more counter space now than we did in our last home, I still manage to cover all the surfaces during some of my more involved cooking/baking days. I have been known to exclaim, "I don't have anywhere to put this!" only to have my husband look at me in bewilderment. In my defense, it usually involves needing my sink, which is, in my opinion, rather small for the size of our kitchen.

With my parents coming to visit last Sunday for a grandson-fix, I was inspired to make this by a lonely whole chicken wasting away in our deep freezer.  This recipe is easy all around (even more-so if you get your butcher to cut up the chicken for you) and great for when you have company.  Toss all the ingredients in a roasting pan and pop it in the oven for 50 minutes.  We even used the roasting pan as the serving dish and let everyone pick out what they wanted, buffet style.  With just one dish to clean up, it allowed for less time in the kitchen and more time where it counts - with family!

Simple, but classic flavorings of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and thyme make this baked chicken dish a great choice for last minute guests, or anytime you want a wholesome, comforting meal with minimal effort.

Baked Chicken with Onions, Potatoes, Garlic, and Thyme

Source: Slightly adapted from Everyday Food, October 2009
Yield: Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 50 minutes
Total time: 1 hour

 

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken (3 to 3 1/2 pounds), cut into 8 pieces and breasts halved crosswise
• 1 pound white new potatoes, halved (quartered if large)
• 1 large red onion, cut into eighths
• 1 head garlic, cloves separated and left unpeeled
• 6 sprigs thyme
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 1 pound baby carrots
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Arrange chicken, potatoes, onion, carrots, garlic, thyme, and lemon in a 12-by-16-inch roasting pan.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and vinegar and drizzle over chicken and vegetables.
3. Toss to combine and season with salt and pepper. Turn chicken skin side up. Roast until chicken is browned and cooked through, about 50 minutes.

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

I recently talked about regional differences in traditional breakfast foods. With our first little one here now, we seem to be starting some breakfast traditions of our own. Once each weekend, we get up and cook a delicious breakfast together, be it biscuits and gravy, eggs with toast and hash browns, bagel sandwiches, or my favorite - pancakes! It's a nice change from a bowl of cereal or cream cheese laden bagel, and fun to prepare a meal together.



We typically use my favorite pancake recipe with apples and (sometimes) cranberries, but last week I got inspired to make peanut butter banana pancakes. I'm not sure where the urge came from, but my husband sometimes slathers peanut butter in between his pancakes, so I knew he would be on board! At the last minute, chocolate chips sounded like a perfect addition, so I tossed a few into the batter.

I am so happy with how these pancakes turned out. There is a great balance of the three main components, which complement each other well in every bite!

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Source: Adapted from my favorite pancake recipe
Yield: Serves 4 (2 pancakes each)
Preparation time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup oat bran
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 banana
• 1/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Add the peanut butter and honey to a heat-safe bowl. Microwave in 20 second intervals on low power until mixture is softened and warm. Mash half of the banana, and slice the remaning half into 1/4 inch thick rounds, then cut the rounds into quarters. Stir the mashed banana into the peanut butter mixture.
2. Stir together oat bran through cinnamon in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine milk, egg, and oil; stir to mix.
3. Add milk mixture to flour mixture, stir just until mixed. Fold in peanut butter mixture, chopped banana, and chocolate chips.
4. Heat griddle or pan, then spray with cooking spray. Drop 1/3 cup of batter onto griddle, repeat with remaining batter. Heat until bubbles form at the surface and bottom is lightly browned, then flip and cook through.

Curry Shrimp with Green Beans and Soba Noodles

A few weeks ago I mentioned one of our favorite curry recipes, and said it was one of two favorites. Today, I am bringing you the other favorite! After trying so many different recipes, this one always stood out as the best. When I went back to evaluate why, and compare all the recipes, I found that this one calls for twice the curry powder that the others do. That could definitely explain why we like this recipe so much more!



As luck would have it, I wanted to make this right as we ran out of curry powder. I was due to refill some other spices, so I turned to my trusty spice store, Penzeys, for a new order. I flipped to the curry page in the catalog and was instantly overwhelmed. There were so many different kinds, and I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that I didn't realize "curry powder" was really a blend of several different spices. I thought curry powder was just - curry powder, like turmeric is just turmeric. Boy, was I wrong!

I grabbed my empty curry jar and scanned the ingredient list, then picked the one in the catalog that sounded the closest and crossed my fingers as I placed the order. I chose the sweet curry powder, and it turned out to be the perfect choice. It was just the right blend for us!

This is a fabulously quick, easy, one pot meal - great for a weeknight. This combination of spices is our favorite curry sauce, which I suspect we will be able to use in many other curry dishes in the future!

Curry Shrimp with Green Beans and Soba Noodles

Source: Slightly adapted from The Gracious Pantry
Yield: Serves 2-3
Preparation time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1 pound frozen shrimp (peeled and deveined, tail off)
• 1 can light coconut milk (14 oz)
• 1 pound fresh green beans
• 3 green onions, diced
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 4 teaspoons curry powder
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 6 ounces soba noodles

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients except soba noodles in a large pot or pan, cover and bring to a boil.
2. Once you have a nice rolling boil, remove the lid and continue to cook over medium to medium-high heat.
3. Add soba noodles and cook an additional 3-4 minutes, until noodles are soft and shrimp are cooked through.

Tilapia with Lemon Pesto and Oven Roasted Tomatoes

We've been in a fish rut for a months now. All I seem to make with our stash of frozen tilapia is fish tacos. While fish tacos are pretty darn awesome, I knew I would need to move on, eventually. For a while I could blame it on the nice weather (I'm talking last summer, here), but even in the dead of winter, I turned to that easy-to-prepare, delicious, healthy fish taco recipe.

I could further blame it on the fact that most of the tilapia recipes in my queue call for breadcrumbs, and I can't find whole wheat breadcrumbs in the store. Or, I did eventually find some, but a look at the ingredient label revealed that they contained high fructose corn syrup. (In breadcrumbs? Really?) They immediately went back on the shelf. Yes, I know I can make them at home, but I'm too lazy busy to figure out how to achieve the right texture.

Enter one of my favorites blogs: Elly Says Opa! This recipe caught my eye because I had some pesto to use up, and allowed me to skirt around my bread crumb debacle.

This turned out to be a quick, simple way to prepare a flavorful dish!

Tilapia with Lemon Pesto and Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Source: Elly Says Opa!
Yield: Serves 2
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons pesto
• 1 lemon
• 2 tilapia filets
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425. Toss the tomatoes and the garlic with the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Roast for about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, juice the lemon and reserve both the juice and the juiced lemon. To the juice, add the pesto and stir to combine. Season the tilapia with salt and pepper and then spread the pesto mixture on top of the fish.
3. Take the pan of roasted garlic and tomatoes out of the oven and nestle the cut lemon into the pan. Place the tilapia on top of the lemon and tomatoes and put back in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until the fish is flaky and no longer opaque. Spoon the tomatoes over the fish.

Irish Soda Bread

Despite a significant amount of Irish in my blood, I'd never had Irish soda bread until last weekend. With Saint Patrick's Day upon us, I've seen requests for this recipe everywhere, and it piqued my interest. When I first saw the (very simple) ingredient list, I thought, "What is so special about this bread?"



It seemed easy enough to whip up, so that I did. My first loaf was dense and almost chewy - not good eats. This recipe turned out so much better for my second attempt, and had me singing the praises of Irish soda bread along with everyone else.

This tasty bread is crisp on the outside, but so soft on the inside. The buttermilk lends great flavor to the bread - tear off a piece and enjoy with butter, jam, or just by itself! Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Irish Soda Bread

Source: Slightly adapted from Cate's World Kitchen
Yield: 1 loaf
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Total time: 55 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/8 teaspoons baking soda (fresh is best)
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F, and grease a baking sheet (or line with parchment)
2. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda in a medium bowl and wisk together with a fork.
3. Stir in half the buttermilk, then add the remaining buttermilk 2 tbsp at a time.
4. You want the dough to be just a little bit moist. It should hold together, but not be sticky. If you accidentally add too much milk, knead in some flour until the dough is no longer sticky.
5. Shape into a ball, then cut an X into the top.
6. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until golden brown. (If you tap on the bottom of the loaf with your knuckles, it should sound hollow).
7. Let cool as long as you can stand to wait, then serve with butter and jam.
   Best if eaten within about 3 hours of baking.

Basil Chicken in a Coconut-Curry Sauce

It's easy to get lost in the sea of recipe sources these days. There are cookbooks, family recipes tucked in a recipe box, magazines, Food Network shows, more magazines… and let's not forget all the other food blogs I have in my Google Reader. Every once in a while I think of those poor cookbooks (collecting dust), hanging around the kitchen, and find it refreshing to crack them open and rediscover the recipes waiting inside.





I recently pulled out my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook for some inspiration, and found plenty! I kept jumping from one page to the next, finding quite a few recipes to choose from given what ingredients I already had in the house. I was sold on this recipe, however, as soon as I saw the title. First off, it would use some basil that was dying a slow death in my refrigerator (and good basil is a terrible thing to waste). Second, I've been mildly obsessed with curry lately. In the last month, I've probably made five different curry dishes. Two have emerged as our favorites, for different reasons, and this is one of them.

We love this dish because marinating the chicken in the spices allows for a nice punch of flavor. The dish is balanced by the sauce, which uses fresh garlic, onion, and ginger, and has a surprisingly subtle background of basil.

Basil Chicken in a Coconut-Curry Sauce

Source: Reworded from Better Homes and Gardens Bridal Edition Cookbook
Yield: Serves 4
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup chopped red onion
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced or grated
• 1 can unsweetened light coconut milk (~14 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, cut into ribbons
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 3 cups cooked rice (use brown rice if you are following a clean eating diet)

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl combine curry powder, black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and the chili powder. Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Add to spice mixture in bowl; toss to coat. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours to allow spices to penetrate meat.
2. Pour oil into a wok or large nonstick skillet; heat over medium-high heat. Add half of the chicken to wok. Cook and stir for 4 to 6 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from wok. Repeat with remaining chicken.
3. Add onion, jalapeno peppers, and garlic to wok; cook and stir about 8 minutes or until crisp-tender.
4. Stir together coconut milk, cornstarch, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt until smooth. Carefully add to onion mixture in wok. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly.
5. Return chicken to wok. Stir in basil and ginger. Cook and stir about 2 minutes or until heated through. Serve over hot rice.

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate with Whipped Coconut Cream

Hot chocolate is one of the most comforting winter indulgences, I think. Warm, creamy, delicious chocolate - perfect for curling up with when it's cold and snowy outside. I look forward to enjoying hot chocolate all winter long, and it's one of the only ways I truly enjoy chocolate. My husband loves it, too, and when I saw this recipe for peanut butter hot chocolate, I knew he'd be excited about it.

 

Chocolate and peanut butter is such a classic combination, and they marry well together in this lovely twist on classic hot chocolate. Growing up, my favorite topping was none other than the classic Fluff. I loved that stuff (well, I still do!) but it's not exactly fitting into the clean eating lifestyle. Enter: the genius happening over at The Gracious Pantry. Tiffany recently introduced her readers to a whipped cream alternative made from coconut milk. Given my recent addiction to all things curry, I had some coconut milk in stock and decided to try it out.



All I can say is coconut cream = awesome. I forgot all about Fluff once I topped my hot chocolate with this heavenly stuff. I'm sure you are wondering if you can taste the coconut. I could when sampling it alone, but I skimped a bit on the honey/vanilla. Once atop the hot chocolate, I couldn't pick out the coconut at all. Just lovely, creamy deliciousness to perfectly complement more lovely, creamy deliciousness.

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate with Whipped Coconut Cream
Source: Slightly adapted from Dolcetto Confections/Martha Stewart
Generously serves 2

2 cups skim milk
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
2 tablespoons sucanat
1 tablespoon whipped coconut cream

In a medium saucepan over low heat, warm milk until it just begins to simmer and bubbles form around the edge of the pan. Whisk in chocolates, peanut butter, and sucanat until melted and smooth. Cover and continue warming over low heat until warmed through. For a thicker cup of cocoa, simmer hot chocolate uncovered until desired thickness is achieved. Ladle hot chocolate into individual mugs, top with whipped cream.

Whipped Coconut Cream
Source: Reworded from The Gracious Pantry

1 14 ounce can regular coconut milk (do not use light milk)
1 tablespoon. agave or honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon coconut cream (recipe follows)

1. Identify which end of the can you'll open with the can opener (for some cans that's the bottom) and place it that-end-down in the fridge for at least a day. The longer, the better. Gently turn the can over and open it. The cream should be solid at the (now) bottom of the can, with a layer of clear liquid on top. Pour off the clear liquid (great for use in smoothies or added to juice for a tropical touch).

2. Scoop the cream out of the can and into a medium bowl. Add honey and vanilla extract. Blend or whisk together until well combined.

3. Refrigerate coconut cream for a few hours to set; it will thicken slightly when chilled.

Note: If you find that even after chilling, the cream won’t stiffen up, put it into a blender with 1 package of unflavored gelatin. Let it sit out for about an hour. Once it’s thick as it should be, put it back into the fridge to chill further.

Mediterranean Vegetable, White Bean and Feta Penne

Loaded with fresh ideas, I pulled this recipe from my "to make" list for an easy weekend meal. When I showed the recipe to my husband, he requested that I add some chicken. I thought it would be a great addition, too, and decided that seasoning it with Herbs de Provence would be a great complement to the flavors in the dish.




This dish is not only delicious, but a cinch to throw together.  The flavors are great (of course, I am a huge fan of feta cheese), and we discovered an added bonus - it is also delicious as a cold pasta salad for leftovers! 

Mediterranean Vegetable, White Bean and Feta Penne
Source: Slightly adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, February 2011, Page 40

6 oz whole-grain penne pasta
1 cup cooked canned white beans, drained and rinsed well
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced, divided
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp plus 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 medium zucchini, cut into eighths lengthwise, then cut into 2-inch pieces
1 medium green bell pepper, cut into thin strips, then cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta
2 boneless, skinless chicken breats (optional)
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Cook penne according to package directions, adding beans during the last minute of cooking.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, 2 cloves garlic, vinegar, basil, pepper flakes and salt; set aside.

3. (Optional if using chicken) Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet on medium heat, tilting skillet to coat bottom lightly. Sprinkle chicken with herbs de provence, then add to skillet. Cook about 8 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Remove from skillet.

4. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in same skillet over medium high heat, tilting skillet to coat bottom lightly. Add zucchini and bell pepper and cook for 4 minutes or until edges begin to brown, stirring frequently. Add remaining 2 cloves garlic and cook for 15 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in tomato mixture and drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp oil. Chop chicken into bite size pieces and add to vegetable mixture. Cover to keep warm.

Four: Drain penne-bean mixture, place in a serving bowl, sprinkle evenly with rosemary and all but 1/4 cup feta. Spoon vegetable/chicken mixture over top and finish with remaining feta.

Orange Chipotle Chicken

My desire to finally get back in the kitchen was greatly influenced by the arrival of the latest issue of Clean Eating Magazine. I can’t get enough of this magazine. I’ve said it before and I will say it again – I seriously love it! The latest issue is chock full of recipes I can’t wait to try (many of them are listed as $2 per serving!), but this one jumped out at me immediately. The flavors sounded perfect, and I knew my husband would love them. Already having the ingredients in stock also helped to make it attractive (getting to the grocery store is somewhat more challenging these days).



This meal has the perfect trifecta – quick to make, packed with great flavors, and easy on the wallet. I am sure we will be revisiting it soon!

I neglected to deseed the chipotles, and the dish was pretty spicy, so remember to remove them if you are sensitive to that.


Orange Chipotle Chicken
Source: Clean Eating Magazine, February 2011, Page 38


1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin (cumin haters like me can use coriander)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp safflower oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb), rinsed and patted dry, pounded to 1/2-inch thick
1/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tbsp chopped chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (remove seeds to keep the heat down)
1 tsp orange zest
2 cups cooked brown rice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Directions

One: In a small bowl, combine chile powder, cumin, and 1/4 tsp salt. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high. Tilt skillet to coat bottom lightly. Season both sides of chicken with chile-cumin mixture and cook for 3 minutes per side or until no longer pink in center. Remove from skillet and set aside.

Two: Add orange juice and maple syrup to juice and bits left in skillet and cook for 1 minute to thicken slightly (until it measures 1/4 cup liquid) stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in chipotle chiles in adobo sauce and orange zest. Add chicken back to skillet, return to heat and cook for 1 minutes on medium high turning constantly.

Three: In a medium bowl, combine rice, cilantro and remaining 1/4 tsp salt. Serve chicken over rice and spoon any excess glaze over top of chicken pieces.

Nutritional Information (per serving: 3 oz chicken and 1/2 cup rice):
Calories: 283
Fat: 4g
Sat. Fat: 1g
Carbs: 32g
Fiber: 2g
Sugars: 8g
Protein: 29g
Sodium: 337 mg
Cholesterol: 32 mg