Banana Oat Overnight Oats, by Cheryl

I've made overnight oats before, but they didn't pack this much flavor and deliciousness as this new batch did! I'm not the biggest oatmeal fan, but I think this recipe has won me over! Creamy, healthy, and seriously yummy... I'll be making this one again! Yum!

Ingredients (makes 2 servings):

1 cup almond milk
1 cup oats
1 mashed banana
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp maple syrup
2 tablespoons chopped nuts
1 tablespoon peanut or almond butter
pinch of nutmeg

Directions:

1) Put everything into a mason jar and give a stir or shake. Place in the refrigerator overnight.

2) In the morning scoop out half of the jar and microwave for one minute. Enjoy!

Banana Muffins, by Cheryl

These are the best, the best I tell ya! So healthy and so good! Julia eats about 3 of them a day - she always thinks she's having dessert since I put a few chocolate chips in there. I make them about once a week and they are great for a breakfast on the go or a snack. Yum!

Ingredients (original recipe from here):

1.5 cups whole wheat flour (I've played around with this a bunch and I like .75 cup whole wheat flour and .75 cup ground oats)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup maple syrup
3 ripe bananas, mashed
a couple handfuls of spinach or kale, optional
nuts or chocolate chips, optional

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 350. Line muffin pan with liners.

2) In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Make a hole in the center and drop the eggs, butter, and syrup in. Mix with a fork until it all comes together.

3) In a bowl mash the bananas together. Mix them into the other mixture. If using spinach or kale, process a couple of handfuls until they are very finely chopped. Mix in.

4) Distribute into the muffin tin and bake for about 20 minutes. Makes around 14-16 muffins.

Spanish Rice, by Diane

My mom makes this dish a lot, and it's been a comfort food since I was little. When I was in Istanbul a while back I stocked up on some newer spices to try and I figured this was a good dish to try them in! It's super quick for a weeknight hit of comfort. The recipe is pretty basic and easy to modify, and I can see this going well with ground turkey or different kinds of rice/grains too. I'm posting the version you see here, with the added spices and immune boosting ingredients!


Ingredients:

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 spanish onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. ground beef
Salt and pepper
2 tsp spanish paprika
1-2 tsp dried oregano
1-2 tsp turmeric
1/2 jar spaghetti sauce (or one 14.5 oz can of tomato sauce)
1.5 cups instant white rice
1 cup water
Goya seasoning (to taste)


Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, add the oil through beef and cook until the beef is brown and crumbled and the onions are translucent.

2. Drain the beef mixture and add in the remaining ingredients, cooking on low-medium heat until the rice is cooked through and most of the liquid is absorbed.

Almond Butter Apple Stack, by Diane

I have had a really busy schedule lately, and this snack I came up with a while back has been a great option to keep me full and energized on the go! It's pretty customizable, but I tend to use the ingredients listed below for protein and fuel (except the chocolate, that's for me!). It's really great post-workout or if I'm craving something sweet at night but don't want to eat junk. I stack it up like this and wrap it to eat it on the go one layer at a time, but if I'm home I'll just leave the rings on a plate and eat it like that (it kind of reminds me of my watermelon pizza this way!). YUM.

Ingredients:

1 large apple (I use organic granny smith)
2-4 tbsp unsalted, unsweetened almond butter
Toppings: shredded unsweetened coconut, hemp seeds, mini chocolate chips, almond slivers, sea salt

Directions:

1. Slice the apple horizontally into 5 rings, removing the cores.

2. Spread the almond butter on top, sprinkle on ingredients in this order (if you sprinkle the larger ones first the smaller ones won't stick, and then you only want a small amount of sea salt).

Healthy Asian Lettuce Wraps, by Cheryl

I originally made these during the week of Passover since they don't have any bread or yeast in them and they were delish! Fast forward almost a year and I felt like making these again, but didn't know where I had gotten the recipe. Lo and behold, halfway through cooking I realized that I was using the same recipe as I did from last year! So having eaten these twice I can say that they are a solid health option for dinner and super easy and fast to make, which is key in my life these days. Yum!

Ingredients (recipe from here):

1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup onion, diced (I used a medium onion)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece of ginger, diced (I used ground ginger)
5 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
3/4 cup water chestnuts roughly chopped
Bibb lettuce
Optional toppings:
shredded carrots
roughly chopped peanuts
chopped green onion
toasted sesame seeds

Directions:

1) Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add in the meat and cook until no longer pink. Set aside.

2) In the same pan, cook the onion, garlic, and ginger for 3-4 minutes. Add the meat and water chestnuts.

3) Stir in the hoisin sauce and soy sauce and cook everything for a few minutes.

4) Place the meat mixture in the lettuce cups and top with optional toppings.

Avocado Bean "Alfredo" Sauce, by Cheryl

Um, yum!! This is such a healthy alternative to a standard alfredo sauce that is full of cheese and cream. The white beans blend really well to provide a nice base for the sauce (as well as added protein) and the avocado adds a whole other level of creaminess to the dish. I combined two recipes when I made this and since the dish was green anyway, I blended some spinach into the mix in order to add some greens. I put in about a quarter cup of shredded quattro formaggio, but you can easily eliminate that and the taste will still be there. We had this with whole wheat gnocchi and for leftovers the next day I made it with whole wheat rotini. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 can white beans
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1/4-1/2 cup milk (whatever you need to use to make it thinner)
1 avocado
spinach or kale
salt and pepper to taste
pasta or gnocchi

Directions:

1) Melt butter in a pan. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a food processor.

2) Add the white beans, broth, avocado, and spinach to the processor. Blend until creamy. Add milk until it loosens out some.

3) Transfer to a pan to heat up slightly. Add cheese if desired and mix. Add the pasta or gnocchi to the pan and coat well. Top with shredded cheese, or not!