PB&J Smoothie, by Diane

 

I ran out of greens for my typical morning smoothie at the same time that this recipe popped up on my instagram from @thefeedfeed- kismet! This was a little more time to make since I had to make 2 batches, but it was really good! My only advice would be to use as little liquid as possible because both batches were a little thinner than I would like. I also added a little stevia to the berry portion because it was too tart for me. I loved it though and would definitely make it again!

Ingredients:

1 whole frozen banana

1 cup milk of choice (I used almond coconut- start at 1/2 cup and go up as needed to blend)

2 dates

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp nut butter (I used almond)

4 tbsp oats

protein powder of choice (I used collagen)

2 cups frozen berries

1/2 lemon, juiced (I might skip this next time since it was tart)

1 cup water (again I would start at 1/2 cup and go up as needed to blend)

Directions:

1. Blend the banana through protein powder in one batch until smooth and creamy. Pour into a large glass and set aside.

2. Blend the remaining ingredients berries through water until smooth.

3. Using a large glass or mason jar, start by pouring 1/3 of the berry mixture in, then 1/2 the pb mixture, then alternate until it's all in. You can swirl it a bit if you need. I actually really liked drinking it unblended because it was nice to get both tastes in just like a real PB&J! 

Mistake Cake, by Diane

This is a recipe I have been making for years for our family and I have just never thought to post it! This cake is a riff on a strawberry shortcake, but we make it with blueberries for the 4th of July each year. The cake gets its name from a mistake that went wrong but so good it's oh so right and now we make it this way every year! A few 4th of July's ago, I tried to make whipped cream from scratch using whipping cream and sugar, then assembled the layers of the cake and put it in the fridge before our cookout. By the end of the meal, the whipped cream had turned to liquid and essentially melted through the layers of the cake. What started out as a massive disappointment turned into quite the discovery as the cake soaked up all the sugary creamy goodness and now we will never make it any other way!! This cake is so freakin' delicious and absolutely the taste of summer. YUM.

Ingredients:

1 ring angel food cake

1 pint strawberries, sliced

1 pint blueberries

1 8oz container heavy whipping cream

1/2- 1 1/2 cups sugar

Canned whipped cream

Directions:

1. Slice the angel food cake into three even layers and poke each layer several times with a fork, set aside. 

2. Mix cream and sugar until the sugar dissolves (use your desired level of sweetness).

3. Assemble the cake by starting with the bottom layer and drizzling about 8 tbsp of the cream mixture onto the cake, making sure it soaks in. Then cover with berries and place the next cake layer on top. 

4. Repeat for all layers, and the drizzle more cream mixture over the outsides and inside of the cake, reserving some "mistake cake sauce" for serving. Chill for 30-60 minutes to allow the sauce to absorb.

5. When ready to serve, top with dollops of canned whipped cream and berries and serve with a side of the magic sauce. Yum!!!

Belgian Waffles, by Cheryl

On March 25 it was National Waffle Day. How do I know this? Well, my kindergartener's principal sends a lovely one minute video message to all of the students everyday and he has a different day for every date! It's pretty informative actually, haha. Anyway, I didn't have the energy to cook waffles right then and there, but we made them the next morning with this recipe. They were so fluffy and different than other waffle recipes I've tried before. I had to beat the egg whites until they fluffed up into stiff peaks and the fold it into the batter.. I think this really made the difference! I'll be making them again. Yum!

Ingredients:

2.25 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1) In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.

2) In a medium bowl beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Set aside.

3) In another bowl mix the egg yolks, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla extract.

4) Add the egg yolk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well.

5) Fold in the egg whites.

6) Heat up your waffle iron and spray it with oil.

7) Pour the batter into the waffle iron (I used half a cup) and cook according to its directions.

8) Serve immediately with optional toppings such as butter, whipped cream, fruit, etc.

Blueberry Banana Açaí Bowl, by Diane

This has been my go to breakfast even though it’s winter for the past few weeks. I love smoothie bowls, but the place on my block has added sweeteners and granola, etc., and so I had to get creative while on Whole30. Its super easy to throw together and I always decorate it a bit to make it a little more special. This is the best version I’ve made all month, so I decided to post it!


Ingredients:

1/2 frozen banana
1/3 frozen zucchini
2 tbsp Sunfoods Açaí Maqui Bowl Mix (I’ve also subbed frozen açaí kale mix from Whole Foods!)
Small handful frozen blueberries
1 tbsp cacao powder
2 tbsp collagen
1/4 cup almond milk (can add more based on consistency)
Toppings: chia seeds, hemp seeds, cacao nibs, shredded dehydrated coconut, pepitas, almond butter


Directions:

Whip all ingredients except toppings in a blender, adding more milk if needed. Top and enjoy!

Blackberry Sage Sausage Patties, by Diane

These were my lunches for the week courtesy of another Whole30 recipe I found on my feed. They were really easy to make and very flavorful! The flavor combination was really interesting, I think you could substitute berries and easily make them with ground chicken too. The only sub I made below is that blackberry seeds always get stuck in my teeth so instead of placing the whole berries into the patties I put them through a strainer and put the juice into the patties to make them more flavorful as well. I did crush one blackberry on the top of each of the patties for looks :)

Recipe by @therealfoodrds

Ingredients:

1lb ground pork
1/2 tsp each dried sage and thyme, garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup blackberries
Oil for cooking (I used coconut)

Directions:

1. Mix all of the ingredients through pepper in a bowl. I put the blackberries through a strainer and put that liquid into the bowl as well in this step.

2.  Shape the mixture into about eight patties, gently pressing a few berries into each one. I skipped this step because of what I did in step one.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, adding in oil for cooking. Place the patties into the pan being careful not to crowd them. Cook 2 to 3 minutes on each side until browned and cooked through.

Strawberry Chicken Farro Salad, by Cheryl

I finally had time to read all of my Eating Well magazines since I have two weeks off from graduate school and had a couple of long flights to keep me entertained. This recipe comes from the magazine and let me just tell you it was scrumptious! Normally I don't do salads as a main course for dinner, but adding the farro in with the salad makes it more like a sweet and savory bowl rather than just a salad. And I knew that by adding that grain that Jon would find it more hearty as well and would therefore eat it up! The marinade the strawberries were in was the perfect dressing and went so well with all of the other ingredients. My final product did not have toasted pecans, but instead just regular chopped ones since I burned the first batch (don't let those suckers out of your sight for a second... they burn quickly!) and I didn't want to risk burning more. Second, the recipe calls for feta cheese which we didn't have. I think blue cheese would go so well with this though. Definitely a keeper. Yum!

Ingredients:

Olive oil
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon honey ( I used maple syrup)
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
black pepper
salt
2 cups halved strawberries
2 (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast cutlets
paprika
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
3 tablespoons chopped pecans, toasted
feta cheese, crumbled

Directions:

1) Combine 1 tablespoon oil, the vinegar, honey, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a bowl and stir with a whisk. Add 1 cup strawberries, tossing to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.

2) Meanwhile, cook farro according to package directions.

3) Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Brush chicken with remaining 1 teaspoon oil; sprinkle evenly with pepper, salt, and paprika. Coat pan with oil or cooking spray. Add chicken to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until done. Remove and let stand for 5 minutes.

4) Divide farro, spinach, 1 cup strawberries and onion between 2 plates or bowls. Top evenly with chicken and strawberry-balsamic mixture. Top each serving with pecans and cheese.

Baked Berry Oatcakes, by Diane

In my neverending quest to find a quick and healthy warm breakfast for the colder months, I came across this recipe and got pretty excited about it. Superfood Soaked Oats is my regular breakfast, but I'm not a great fan of it warm. This recipe is basically my soaked oats recipe but baked into a cake (who doesn't love that?!). And, it has no flour or sugar added into it, which make these little babies healthy! This was a great, versatile recipe that you can customize however you'd like. Definitely a winner!

Recipe inspired by:http://curlsnchard.com/2014/11/17/quick-bake-berry-oatcakes/

Ingredients (makes 12 cakes):

1 1/2 cups oats 
2 tbsp chia seeds 
3 tbsp shredded coconut
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp maple syrup (optional)
ginger
cinnamon (part in the dish and then a sprinkle on top!)
cardamom (I skipped this one)
a pinch of salt
rice milk (I subbed vanilla almond milk)
handful mixed berries (frozen or fresh)
several pecans (I omitted these and opted for flax seeds instead!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Put the oats and chia into a blender or food processor and blend until the oats a more flour than oats (my nutribullet has a milling blade and this works great!).
3. Put oat-chia mixture, baking soda, coconut, spices and coconut oil in a small bowl and mix with as much rice milk that it looks like a liquidy oatmeal (should be pretty liquidy!).
4. Let sit for a few minutes, so the chia seeds can slightly gel up.
5. Grease the pan or ramekins with cooking spray or more coconut oil and put a spoon full of batter in on the bottom.
6. Add some berries to the center.
7. Add another spoon full of batter to cover the fruit – the ramekins should not be more than 3/4 full, otherwise the batter will spill over as the oatcakes rise.
8. Top off with some more fruit and a pecan nut.
9. Place muffin tin on top of a large cookie sheet to catch any spills, and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothppick inserted into the center comes out clean.