Granola Bars

Adapted from Elana's Pantry

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup almond flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup xylitol
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup pecans


Preparation:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F
2.  In a large bowl combine almond flour, baking soda, sea salt, and xylitol
3.  In a small bowl, combine grapeseed oil and vanilla.
4.  Mix wet ingredients into dry.
5.  Stir in coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almond slices, and pecans
6.  Pat down evenly into a greased 8x8 baking dish
7.  Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:
Cookie:
1/2 cup vanilla whey protein (Jay Robb or AboutTime)
3/4 cup almond flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup natural creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup xylitol
2 tablespoons water

Filling:
1/2 cup natural creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup cream cheese
1/3 cup xylitol

Preparation:
Cookie:
1.  Preheat oven to 400 F
2.  In a medium bowl, combine protein, almond flour, and baking soda.
3.  Mix in peanut butter until the lumps are smaller than peas.
4.  Add in water and sweetener.
5.  Form dough into a ball and roll out on parchment paper to 1/8 inch thickness
6.  Cut out cookies with cookie cutters (I used the scoop from my protein, worked great!)
7.  Bake on parchment lined baking sheet for 5-7 minutes, or when edges start to brown.

Filling:
1.  Combine cream cheese, peanut butter, and xylitol in a bowl.
2.  Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

Adapted from JM Thomas at All Recipes

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 to 1 1/2 cups almond flour
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup xylitol

Filling:  
12 oz cream cheese
1 1/2 cup xylitol
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice OR 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 2 teaspoons nutmeg, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, and 2 teaspoons all spice.
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

Preparation:

Crust:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F
2.  Pour almond meal in an 8x8 Pyrex.  Use more almond meal for a thicker crust and less for a thinner one.  Spread evenly so you can see how thick the crust will be before you add the butter and xylitol.
3.  Once you have the desired amount of almond meal, add butter and xylitol.
4.  Mix ingredients together and spread evenly with your fingers.
5.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.  Keep a close eye on it towards the end because once it starts to brown it goes fast.
6.  Let cool completely, preferably overnight, before adding filling.

Filling:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F
2.  Beat together cream cheese and xylitol with an electric mixer.
3.  Add pumpkin, spices, and salt.  Mix again.
4.  Beat in eggs one at a time, until mixture is homogeneous.
5.  Bake for 65-75 minutes, or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
6.  Cool completely and serve

Note: This was SO good you guys!  Perfect for Thanksgiving!  Also, I was messing around in the kitchen and ended up making this topping that tastes like cool whip! Enjoy!

Cool Whip:
Ingredients:
3/4 cup half and half
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
6 packets Truvia
1 oz cream cheese

Preparation:
1.  Combine all ingredients with an electric mixer, mix until homogeneous.

Oreos

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:


Cookies:
1/2 cup vanilla whey protein (Jay Robb or About Time)
3/4 cup almond flour
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons xylitol
2 tablespoons water

Filling:
8 oz cream cheese
2 tablespoons unsweetened vanilla almond milk
3/4 cup xylitol

Preparation:


Cookies:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F
2.  In a medium bowl, combine protein, almond flour, baking soda, and cocoa powder.
3.  Cut in the cold butter using your fingers until the lumps are smaller than peas.
4.  Add in water and xylitol
5.  On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, place 1 inch diameter balls of dough, and then flatten them into circles.  Make sure the balls are tiny!  You don't want to end up with 5 giant oreos.  You should end up with about 32 individual cookies.
6.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Let cool in the oven so they will become crispy.

Filling:
1.  Don't soften the cream cheese.
2.  Beat all ingredients together with an electric mixer until smooth.

Chocolate Pudding

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:


3 ripe avocados
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, chocolate or vanilla
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
3/4 cup xylitol

Preparation:

1.  In a small bowl, combine xylitol and and almond milk.  Microwave for 30 to 45 seconds, or until xylitol is melted.
2.  Combine avocados and cocoa powder in a blender.  Blend to combine the two.
3.  Add almond milk mixture to avocado mixture in blender.  Blend until smooth.  Add more almond milk if needed.
4.  Heat in the microwave and serve, or put in the freezer for a delicious frozen treat!

Cauliflower Kettle Corn

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:


1 head if cauliflower
2 tablespoons butter
dash of garlic powder
dash of onion powder
1 - 2 packets Truvia

Preparation:


1.  Preheat oven to 400 F
2.  Chop cauliflower into bite size pieces.
3.  Place cauliflower in a zip lock bag with butter and shake around until evenly coated.
4.  Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with foil.
5.  Sprinkle with onion and garlic powder.
6.  Bake for 45 - 60 minutes, turning cauliflower over every 15 minutes.
7.  Remove from oven, sprinkle with Truvia, serve, and enjoy!

Chicken Stir Fry

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:

Teriyaki Sauce

1 and 2/3 cups wheat free Tamari/Soy sauce

1/3 cup safflower oil

3/4 cup xylitol

12 drops liquid stevia

1 clove garlic, minced

3 green onions, chopped

2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

Stir Fry

2 - 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped into bite size pieces

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 and 1/2 cups broccoli, chopped

1 and 1/2 cups bean sprouts

1/2 an onion, chopped

1 head cauliflower, riced in a food processor

Preparation:

Teriyaki Sauce

1.  Combine all ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil.

2.  Simmer for 30 minutes, then remove from heat and let cool.

3.  Strain through a sieve or cheese cloth and set aside

Stir Fry

1.  In a large saute pan, brown diced chicken in a little sesame or safflower oil.

2.  Turn the heat to high and add all vegetables except for the cauliflower, stirring constantly until all vegetables are cooked through.  Add a few spoonfuls of the teriyaki sauce.

3.  Serve over riced cauliflower and enjoy!  (You can also top with more teriyaki sauce if desired)

Note: For my Teriyaki Sauce, I used Bragg's Liquid Aminos instead of the wheat free soy sauce and I used sesame oil instead of safflower oil.  It tasted good, but the oil separated from the sauce and it was extremely salty, so in this recipe I wrote it the way Maria had it.

Brownies

Adapted from The Spunky Coconut

Ingredients:

1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup almond butter
3 tablespoons coconut flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup xylitol
13 drops liquid stevia
1/4 cup cocoa powder

Preparation:


1.  Preheat oven to 325 F
2.  Combine water and xanthan gum and beat with an elecrtic mixer.
3.  Add all other ingredients and mix until the batter is well combined.
4.  Bake for 35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
5.  Cool and Enjoy!

Note: So just now I made a Cream Cheese Frosting to go on top of these brownies and it was DIVINE.

Cream Cheese Frosting
2 oz. cream cheese
3/4 cup xylitol

1.  Melt xylitol in a sauce pan over medium high heat.
2.  Soften cream cheese in the microwave.
3.  Combine xylitol and cream cheese in a small bowl.
4.  Pour over brownies just before serving.

Bagels

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:


3 tablespoons golden flaxseed meal
2.5 tablespoons coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons xylitol
3 eggs, separated

Preparation:

1.  Preheat oven to 325 F
2.  Combine flaxseed, coconut flour, baking powder, and xylitol in a bowl and mix.
3.  In a separate bowl, whip egg whites with an electric mixer until fluffy

4.  Slowly add in yolks, and then dry mixture.
5.  Allow batter to sit for 5 minutes so it can firm up

6.  Form dough into bagel shapes on a greased cookie sheet or pour into a donut mold.

7.  Bake for 30 minutes, until bagels have turned golden brown.
8.  Top with cream cheese and enjoy!

Super Healthy Chocolate Sorbet

Adapted from The Spunky Coconut

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsweetened Hemp milk (or heavy cream)
2 cups unsweetened Almond milk
2.5 tablespoons cocoa powder
3/4 cup melted xylitol
12 drops liquid stevia
1 teaspoon xanthan gum

Preparation:


1.  Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree.
2.  Add mixture to ice cream maker and follow instructions

Note: Made with Hemp milk, this whole recipe is only about 200 calories!  If you want to make it a little less healthy and a little more delicious, add crumbled brownie pieces.  I'll be posting a successful brownie recipe in a few days hopefully!

Mustard Lime Chicken

Adapted from Elana's Pantry

Ingredients:

3 or 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup lime juice

1/4 cup dijon mustard

1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped basil

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon chili powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

Liquid Stevia

Preparation:

1.  Combine all ingredients except the chicken and stevia in a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth.

2.  Place chicken breasts in a Pyrex baking dish and pour lime-mustard mixture on top.

3.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes and up to 6 hours

4.  Place chicken and sauce in a sauté pan, cover, and cook over medium heat for 30 - 40 minutes, flipping chicken occasionally.  The liquid should reduce to about 1/4 it's original volume.

5.  After plating, top each breast with about 15 drops of liquid stevia.  It adds a great dimension to the flavor.

Note: The flavor of this sauce is INTENSE.  It was originally intended as a marinade, so be prepared for that.  Also, you can use it as a marinade and grill the chicken, which I'm sure would be super tasty, I just don't have a grill in my new apartment!  And if you like cilantro, you can use that instead of the parsley and basil.  Enjoy!

Coconut Almond Poppers

Ingredients:

1/4 cup almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 teaspoon xylitol
Dash of cinnamon
3 teaspoons baking powder
13 drops liquid stevia
3/4 cup half and half
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon melted butter

Preparation:

1.  Pre heat oven to 350 F
2.  In a medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients.  Then add stevia, half and half, olive oil, water, and melted butter.
3.  Form dough into balls.  (If this is not easily done, add an extra tablespoon of coconut flour until you can).
3.  Bake at 350 F for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the poppers are golden brown.

Note:  I have no idea what these are!  It started out as an attempt at eggless pancakes which failed, so I decided to see if this would work.  They're moist in the center and crispy on the outside, and I'm sure they would be great with added fruits or nuts like blueberries, pecans, strawberries or almonds.

Almond Herb Crackers

Adapted from Elana's Pantry

Ingredients:

2 cups almond flour

2 tablespoons Herbes de Provence

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons water

Preparation: 

Pre heat oven to 350 F

1.  In a mixing bowl, combine almond flour, Herbes de Provence, and Parmesan cheese.

2.  In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil and water.

3.  Add wet ingredients to dry and mix.

4.  Form dough into a ball and place on a sheet of parchment paper

5.  Place another sheet of parchment paper on top of the dough and roll with a rolling pin until 1/4 inch thick.

6.  Remove top sheet of parchment paper and transfer the bottom piece with rolled out dough onto baking sheet

7.  Cut into 2 inch squares with a knife or pizza cutter

8.  Bake at 350 F for 11 - 15 minutes, or until lightly golden.

9.  Remove from oven and let sit for 20 minutes on baking sheet, then serve.

Note: I did not make the recipe this way, I didn't use the Parmesan cheese, and had 3/4 tsp of sea salt.  After tasting them, I think this recipe would be tastier!  Let me know how it is!

Blueberry Muffins

Adapted from Maria's Food and Nutrition

Ingredients:


1/2 cup golden flax seed meal
1/4 cup vanilla whey protein powder (Jay Robb or AboutTime)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup Truvia
1 large egg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c unsweetened vanilla almond milk or coconut milk
1 cup blueberries

Preparation:


1.  Pre-heat oven 350 F. 
2.  Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, let stand for 3 minutes. 

3.  Spray a 6 muffin pan with non-stick spray. 
4.  Spoon batter evenly into muffin tins. Bake 25-30 minutes.
5.  Serve with butter and enjoy!


Note: This recipe can easily be doubled.  The original recipe called for rhubarb, but I used blueberries instead.  They kind of ended up sinking to the bottom, so the bottom of the muffin was really wet, almost goupy, while the top of the muffin was drier.  I would say try using a different fruit and see what happens, or just make them without fruit and a little more sweetener!  As I always say, make it your own!  Have fun with it!
If you wait to add in the blueberries until after you've put the batter in the muffin tin, this should keep them from sinking.

Leftover Artichoke Chicken Salad

So I had all this leftover artichoke chicken, and it was time for lunch!  Here's what happened, and I must say, it was delicious.

Ingredients:
1 artichoke chicken breast
1/2 red pepper, diced
10-12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 avocado, chopped
2 cups lettuce
Your favorite dressing (optional)

Preparation:


1.  Cut chicken into bite size pieces and reheat.
2.  Combine with all ingredients in a large bowl and serve

Artichoke Chicken

Adapted from Amanda at All Recipes

Ingredients:
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup Duke's mayo
1 clove garlic, minced
Pepper to taste
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Preparation: 

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2.  Be sure to dry the artichokes with a paper towel until all the liquid is out of them.
3.  In a medium bowl, mix together artichoke hearts, Parmesan cheese, sour cream, mayo, garlic, and pepper.

4.  Place chicken in a greased baking dish and cover evenly with artichoke mixture
5.  Bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear.

Chili

Adapted from Healthy Indulgences

Makes 8 small servings

Ingredients:
1 pound grass-fed ground beef
1 tablespoon oil (olive or coconut)
2-14.5 oz cans organic tomatoes
1-8 oz can organic tomato sauce
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1/4 cup chopped organic celery
3/4 cup chopped organic green bell pepper
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper



Preparation:
1.  Chop vegetables and set aside. 

2.  In a large kettle with a lid, brown ground beef in a little coconut oil over medium heat, stirring around and breaking up the chunks. DO NOT DRAIN THE FAT. I repeat, do NOT drain off the beef fat. S'good for you, and for your flavor-hungry chili! 


3.  Add vegetables and sweat for a few minutes until softened.

4.  Stir in canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, and spices. 

5.  Simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally. Do not touch until the end of that period. You want the veggies to be tender and the flavors to meld.


Note:  This is not the best chili I've ever had.  It felt like it was missing something, and it wasn't just the beans.  (I forgot to add the cloves! lol) However, I feel like this is a great base for a chili recipe that just needs a little tweaking.  Have fun with it =]

Pork Chops with Creamy Sauce

Adapted from Clyde at AllRecipes.com

Ingredients:
3 pork chops
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons paprika

Preparation:


1.  Saute onion and garlic in hot butter.  Remove from skillet.

2.  Trim excess fat from chops and season with salt and pepper.  Brown chops in skillet; pour off fat.

3.  Lower heat, add bay leaf and chicken broth.  Cover and cook for 1 hour on low heat.  Remove from skillet
4.  Return heat to medium and reduce juices in skillet to at least one half their original volume.  Don't let the juices come to a boil. This will take some time, but be patient!
5.  Once juices have reduced, remove bay leaf, and add sour cream, onion and garlic mixture, and paprika, blending thoroughly.  Heat through, but still don't let the mixture boil.

6.  Pour over pork chops and serve

Note: I used chicken stock instead of chicken broth and accidently let it come to a boil during the reducing process.  I don't know if those things had anything to do with it, but I couldn't really get the sauce to come together.  I also used 3 tablespoons of butter, so I reduced it to 2 for the recipe.  It had a lot of oily spots, but still tasted really good, so don't worry, even if this happens to you, it will still taste great!

Peach Chicken

Adapted from Elana's Pantry

Peach Chicken

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
¼ cup grapeseed oil
1 tablespoon celtic sea salt
6 peaches, quartered
4 shallots, halved
6 sprigs fresh thyme

Preparation:

1. Rub chicken with oil, season with salt, then scatter peaches, shallots and thyme around the chicken in a Pyrex baking dish.
2. Roast at 400° for 60 to 90 minutes.
3. Serve with peaches and pan sauce

Serves 6

Vanilla Cupcakes with Butter Cream Frosting

The cupcake recipe is adapted from Elana's Pantry and the frosting recipe is from Healthy Indulgences.

Baby cupcakes!

Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients:
½ cup coconut flour, sifted
½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
6 eggs
½ cup grapeseed oil
3/4 cup xylitol
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preparation:

1. In a medium bowl, combine coconut flour, salt and baking soda
2. In a small bowl, blend together eggs, grapeseed oil, xylitol and vanilla
3. Mix wet ingredients into dry and blend with a mixer or hand blender until smooth
4. Pour batter into well oiled and paper lined muffin tins
5. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes
6. Cool completely

Butter Cream Frosting

Makes enough to frost 3-6 cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 large egg white
1/4 cup xylitol
6 tablespoons unsalted organic butter cut into individual tablespoons
Big pinch sea salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (clear imitation vanilla recommended)

Preparation:

Whisk egg white together with xylitol in a stainless steel bowl set over a small saucepan full of water. You don't want the bottom of the bowl to touch the water. Set heat to medium-low to bring water to a simmer. Whisk egg white with xylitol 3-5 minutes, or until xylitol is completely dissolved. Dip clean fingers into egg white mixture, and pinch for any undissolved granules. Mixture will appear white and foamy.

Remove steel bowl from water, and beat egg white mixture with an electric mixer until it has about doubled in volume, and is room temperature (cool to the touch). Beat in vanilla and salt.

Add chunks of softened butter or shortening, one at a time, beating for 3-5 minutes until mixture is smooth and no longer curdled.  Don't fret if your butter cream doesn't look smooth for awhile--it will eventually come together!

As you can see, it doesn't make very much.  I would
recommend a double batch if you have more than 6 cupcakes.

Troubleshooting: (None of these things happened to me)
If after incorporating the butter the icing is too "loose" and soupy, sit the mixing bowl in an ice bath to cool, or stick the bowl into the freezer for a few minutes, and try beating again. If the mixture is chunky like cottage cheese, heat the bowl over the simmering water again and try beating until it comes together into a smooth icing. Use a spatula to smooth out the consistency. Finally, if you think the frosting tastes too "greasy," trying cutting back the butter by one or two tablespoons.



Transfer frosting to a piping bag, or just spread directly on cupcakes. To revive refrigerated frosting, microwave it for 5-8 seconds, and stir around bowl with a spatula until smooth and creamy again. Or whip until fluffy with beaters.