Mexican Bowls

As a busy mom, I really need meals that are easy to make and I can prep them ahead of time and have them all week. I try to eat fairly healthy and last minute lunch decisions usually lead me to poor choices. I love Mexican food and this is a great, healthy lunch (or dinner!) option for me.

What You'll Need:

1 lb lean ground turkey
1 packet taco seasoning
cooked brown rice (4 servings worth)
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

What You Do:

1. Cook ground turkey in a sauce pan thoroughly before adding taco seasoning
2. Cook the brown rice (4 servings worth)
3. Rinse & Drain black beans
4. Gather 4 containers & layer black beans, rice & ground turkey
5. When ready to eat, warm up if desired and then add all your favorite mexican toppings; I love pico de gallo salsa, organic shredded mozzarella cheese, avocado, a squeeze of lime juice, & a little bit of plain greek yogurt (instead of sour cream)

Now you have a great, healthy meal on the go!

Happy Wednesday, dear friends! Hope yours is a good one!

Recipe Club: Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes

For Riley's first birthday, I wanted to make something extra special for her party. I love to bake and thought I could really put my heart into a special 1st birthday cake/cupcake for her. Then I saw this recipe on Sally's Baking Addiction and I just knew it was meant for her party. Riley's birthday is right around Valentine's Day and the recipe doesn't call for milk (we haven't tried milk with her yet) so I decided this would be the "something" I made with love for my daughter for her special 1st birthday.

Strawberry Shortcake

Cupcakes

Ingredients:

*makes 12 cupcakes

Cupcakes

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tspn baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 tspn salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 2 egg whites
• 1/4 cup yogurt (Greek or regular yogurt, vanilla or plain)
• 3/4 cup milk (or almond milk or skim milk)
• 2 tspn vanilla extract

Strawberry Filling

• 2 cups diced strawberries
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tbspn cornstarch mixed with 2 tspn warm water (to get rid of clumps)

**Make sure to save about 1/2 cup of strawberry filling for the frosting

Strawberry Whipped Cream Frosting

• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 tbspn granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tspn vanilla extract
• saved strawberry filling

**I made sure to get some extra strawberries to make strawberry hearts on the top.

Directions

Make strawberry filling first.

Mixed strawberries in a saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly for about 4 minutes (or until strawberry juices have released and it becomes more of a liquid). Add sugar and cornstarch/water mixture and continue to stir for about another 2 minutes (The cornstarch mixture will really help the filling become less lumpy and it will get thicker). Remove from hear and let it sit and cool.

Make the cupcakes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with 12 cupcake holders.

In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set it aside. Then in a large bowl (microwave-safe), melt the butter, then add sugar. Stir in egg whites, yogurt, milk and vanilla extract until well mixed.

Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until there are no more clumps. 

Pour mixture into cupcake holders evenly. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick, inserted in the center, comes out clean. Set aside to completely cool.

**When I did this recipe, this is where I stopped for the day. I let the cupcakes and filling cool overnight in the fridge. Make sure to cover the cupcakes so they don't harden.

Next day..

Fill the cupcakes.

Cut a hole into the center of each cupcake making sure only to go about half way through the cupcake to create a pocket for the filling. Add strawberry filling to each pocket being careful not to let the filling overflow too much. There will be leftover filling for frosting.

Make strawberry whipped cream frosting.

In a large bowl, whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract on high speed until it thickens considerably (about 4-5 minutes). Add the remaining strawberry filling and continue to beat for another 30 seconds. Frost cupcakes.

Make strawberry hearts.

Cut the strawberry in half from the leaves at the top to the bottom. Then use your knife to cut the leaves off of each half so that it makes the top of the heart.

Here's a visual.

This is the final product for Ry's party and they were delicious!

Riley definitely thought so!

Hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

Clean Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Check out this awesome recipe I found on Pinterest. I made them yesterday in all about 10 minutes of prep and I'm eating them as we speak and they are DELICIOUS.

Ingredients:
2.5 cups old fashioned oats 

1 cup plain low fat Greek yogurt

2 eggs

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 TBSP ground flax seed

1 tsp vanilla

2 ripe bananas 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray tin with non-stick cooking spray or line 12 muffin tins with silicone or foil liners.
2. Place the oats in the food processor and pulse for about 10 seconds.  Add remaining ingredients to the food processor. *I used a blender & it worked just fine!
3. Process until everything is mixed together and oats are smooth.
4. Divide batter among cupcake liners, and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. 
*You can add walnuts or other goodies to the muffins if you'd like to have something a little extra

Happy Wednesday!

Crockpot Chili

Yesterday, my favorite team played in the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots, AND we won. It was a crazy end to the game, if you were home watching it with me you might have seen some yelling, jumping around, and on the interception me running like a crazy woman down the hallway followed by some tears of joy.

But nevermind all that. I decided there is no better dinner to watch some football with other than crockpot chili. I LOVE using my slow cooker. The set it and forget mentality is my jam. 

We love our All-Clad Deluxe Slow Cooker that we received as a wedding present. In my opinion, it is a must have kitchen tool, especially if you are busy. You can find the same one here. Right now they are offering free shipping, so it is a great time to buy.

I grew up eating a lot of meals from my mom's Betty Crocker cookbook. This is one of my faves.

Crockpot Chili

2 lb lean (80% or higher) ground beef

 (I usually substitute with ground turkey for a healthier option)

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 can (15-16 oz) kidney beans, rinsed and drained

Shredded Cheese, if desired

1. In a skillet, cook beef over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain.

(I usually start putting the other ingredients in the crockpot while it cooks).

2. In the slow cooker, mix beef and remaining ingredients expect beans and cheese.

3. Cover and cook on Low setting 6-8 hours (or High for 3-4 hours).

4. Stir in beans. Increase heat to High. Cover and cook 15-20 minutes or until thickened. Add cheese, crackers, etc. if desired.

That's it!

Happy Monday!

-A

Healthy Christmas Party Snacks for Kids

It's that time of year! Lots of cheer, carols and of course holiday parties. Indulging a bit at these parties is warranted I think, but having some healthier options for your kids, while not lacking in the fun category wouldn't be so bad either. We have our fair share of parties to go to over the next few weeks. Searching Pinterest, I found some great ideas for healthy snacks that are festive and fun. Use them for a treat for your kids class, a playdate, a family get together..

1. Grinch Fruit Kabobs

What you'll need: 

-tiny marshmallows

-strawberries

-bananas

-green grapes

-toothpicks

Place the marshmallow on top, then your cut strawberry, banana & lastly your grape. Simple as that!

2. Christmas Tree Watermelon..(or any large fruit really)

Cut your fruit into slices like your normally would & use any holiday cookie cutter you'd like to make a festive healthy snack.

3. Snowman Cheesesticks

How clever and simple. Buy your cheese sticks, get a black and orange sharpie & simply draw a snowman onto the front of your cheese stick.

4. Holiday Sandwiches

All you do is make your sandwich and use a holiday cookie cutter to make a festive lunch for your kids. Here is a pb & j sandwich idea..make sure the jelly is on top & poke holes into the top so the kelly soaks through to add some ornaments to your Christmas tree sandwich.

5.  Pudding Snowmen & Reindeer

What you'll need:

-vanilla and/or chocolate pudding cups

-red & black sharpie pens

-red, white & brown construction paper

-tape/glue

-scissors

Santa Directions:

1. Cut out a piece of white construction paper to the length you'd need to wrap around the bottom your pudding cup.

2. Cut out a rectangular piece of red construction paper long enough to wrap around the bottom of your pudding cup and make a pointed top.

3. Cut out a small circle from your white construction paper for the top of your hat. 

4. Glue/tape the long white strip to the bottom of your red rectangle & let dry.

5. Wrap this around the bottom of your vanilla pudding cup and tape in the back.

6. Tape/glue your circle to the top of the red construction paper & let dry.

7. On the front of your pudding cup, draw a smiley face.

Reindeer Directions:

1. Cut out reindeer antlers from your brown construction paper to the size that matches the size of your chocolate pudding cup.

2. Tape to the top of your pudding cup by folding the bottom of your antlers so the top portion stay upright.

3. Lean your pudding cup back so you can see the bottom of your pudding cup.

4. Draw two eyes with your black sharpie on the front of your pudding cup & draw a red nose on the bottom of your pudding cup with a red sharpie.

Hope you and your kids enjoy these are easy, simple, festive treats!

-A

Healthy Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Check out this awesome recipe I found on Pinterest. I made them yesterday in all about 10 minutes of prep and I'm eating them as we speak and they are DELICIOUS.

Ingredients:
2.5 cups old fashioned oats 

1 cup plain low fat Greek yogurt

2 eggs

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 TBSP ground flax seed

1 tsp vanilla

2 ripe bananas 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray tin with non-stick cooking spray or line 12 muffin tins with silicone or foil liners.
2. Place the oats in the food processor and pulse for about 10 seconds.  Add remaining ingredients to the food processor. *I used a blender & it worked just fine!
3. Process until everything is mixed together and oats are smooth.
4. Divide batter among cupcake liners, and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. 
*You can add walnuts or other goodies to the muffins if you'd like to have something a little extra