Category Archives: No bake/cooking required!

Cilantro Spinach Lime Pesto.

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Since I have received my Magimix by Robot-Coupe 3200 XL Food Processor, I knew I wanted to whip up some pesto in it.  It’s a favorite!  I chose the larger of the 3 bowls to prepare it because the cilantro is a bit of a wild herb.  Everything tucked in nicely and I have to admit, with only a few pulses it does the job.  See the pics below.  Drizzling the olive oil through the large spout also allows me to gauge the consistency of the pesto quite easily v. my old processor.  The machine is powerful yet very quiet.  Cleans up perfectly and I love that the larger bowl comes with a larger blade making my job much easier.

We adore pesto but it doesn’t always have to be the classic basil version.  I made a similar pesto for a pizza sauce and my kids went wild over it.  I mixed it up and thought I would serve this over grilled chicken and whole wheat pasta tonight for dinner.  Would be great over pasta or mixed with grilled fish or chicken.

Ingredients:

1 cup of fresh cilantro
1/2 cup of baby spinach leaves
3/4 cup of raw almonds (pistachios would work well too)
1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup of fresh lime juice
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Optional:  Jalapeño

Directions:

In my new Magimix Food Processor, I added the cilantro, spinach, almonds and garlic to and pulse until it looks like this:

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Then add some salt and pepper.   Parmesan cheese then place the lid back on and drizzle olive oil through the spout with the machine running until it resembles this:

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Give it a taste and adjust the salt and pepper as necessary.  Put in a tupperware container until needed.  If using over pasta, reserve a bit of the pasta water off to the side.  Add the cooked pasta back to the pan with a small bit of the reserved water along with a few tablespoons of the pesto.  Add additional pesto until you achieve the amount you wish to have in the dish.  Refrigerate or freeze the pesto until needed again.  A little goes a long way!

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Almond honey butter.

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Nothing quite like making your own nut butter.  It’s super easy and very tasty.  Grab your nuts and get ready to be impressed!

Ingredients:

2 cups of raw almonds or toasted almonds
1 teaspoon of peanut oil
Sea Salt
3 tablespoons honey

Directions:

In your Vitamix add the almonds.  Blend the nuts on 10 speed for 1-2 minute.  Then add the oil and salt and blend for about 12 minutes.  Stop and scrape the sides down.  The nuts will yield their oil and get creamier.  Then add the honey and additional salt as needed.  Blend until you achieve the texture you desire.

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Pineapple Jalapeño Salsa.

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This recipe is so versatile.  It can be served with tortilla chip at your next soiree or atop fish or chicken for a healthy option.  You can control the spice level with the amount of jalapeño you use or if you remove the inner seeds which contain all the heat.

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Ingredients:
1 bell pepper (I used red), diced
1/2 pineapple, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 cup of cilantro leaves, washed and roughly chopped
1 jalapeño, finely chopped.  If you want  more heat – leave the seed in, if not, remove before chopping
Drizzle of good olive oil

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients and place into a bowl.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors enhance and combine to make their magic.

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Green Ginger Smoothie.

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This is truly one of the best smoothies I’ve ever had – and I’ve had a lot of smoothies!  Sunday night my husband wanted to finally try out our new Vitamix machine and we had a late lunch so, the smoothie sounded light and delicious.  It was and I recreated it today for my girls and again, the lovefest continued!


Ingredients:

1 cup of orange juice
1 green apple, skin on yet cored
1 large handful of organic baby spinach (about 1 heaping cup of the leaves)
1/2 of a pineapple, peeled but not cored if using a Vitamix (if using a blender then core it)
1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
1 scoop of protein powder (vanilla)
1/4 cup of vanilla Chobani yogurt
8 ice cubes

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients into your Vitamix or blender and blend on the smoothie setting.  Pour into glasses and enjoy!  The ginger puts this one over the top!  Fresh and ginger is so good for your stomach.  Vitamin and protein packed.  And, I swear, your kids won’t even suspect that there’s spinach in there!

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Cookie Butter Energy Balls. No-bake.

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These are a take-off of my original energy balls.  I wanted to mix these goodies up and try some cookie butter (from Trader Joe’s) in there to see how they turned out.  They are fabulous!  A bit of a different flavor but oh-so-good!  You can tweak these however you prefer.  I omit chocolate chips and add butterscotch for my husband who is allergic to chocolate.  White chocolate chips would also be perfect!

These will make a great snack or a fast breakfast!  Pack them in your kids lunch for a yummy surprise!

1 c of old-fashioned oats
1 c of toasted coconut flakes
1/2 c of chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate)
1/2 c of Cookie Butter (Speculoos) (regular peanut butter or nut butter can also be used)
1/2 c of wheat bran
1 tbl of chia seeds
1/3 c + 1 /4 tsp of honey (I used raw)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 pinch of salt

Mix it all together in a bowl and then refrigerate for 45 minutes.  Remove and make into balls.  I used a small scooper (1-1.5 inch) to press it in and then eject it.  Rolled it with my hands to get a ball shape all around and then place in a airtight container to refrigerate.  Will last 5-7 days but most likely they will be long gone before that!

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Smoked Gorgonzola Rosemary Cheese Balls.

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The holidays will be here before we know it & I always need a few good staple appetizer recipes that I can prepare easily and ahead of time.  I had leftover smoked gorgonzola from yesterday’s dinner and I thought I would use it.  You can use regular gorgonzola if you couldn’t find smoked.  Blue cheese would also work perfectly.


Ingredients:

4 ounces of smoked or regular gorgonzola (room temperature)
4 ounces of light or low fat cream cheese (room temperature)
1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of white wine
Salt and Pepper
1 cup of slivered and toasted almonds, ground into smaller pieces (walnut pieces would also work well)
20 rosemary sprigs (about 2 inches)

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients into your food processor (except the almonds) and blend until creamy.  Place the mixture on a piece of plastic wrap and cover.  Refrigerate for at least an hour.  Then remove and using a mini scooper, scoop out and roll into bite-sized balls.  Refrigerate for another 30 minutes.

Place your almonds into a bowl.  Roll the cheese balls into the almond or nut mixture and coat to cover.   Place the rosemary sprig into each ball to garnish and refrigerate until needed.

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Pineapple Orange Chobani Smoothies.

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Another Monday, another smoothie flavor for my sweet girls after-school snacking.  Today I went with a pineapple orange blend with some added Cho for protein!  These were gone in less than a minute flat!  Guess that’s a success in their books.

Ingredients:

2 cups of fresh pineapple
2 oranges, peeled
1/3 cup of Chobani vanilla yogurt
1 scoop Whey protein powder
1 banana
8 ice cubes
1 cup of vanilla almond milk

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients into your Vitamix or blender and blend on the smoothie setting.  Pour into glasses and enjoy.

 

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Chobani Spinach Kiwi Apple Smoothie.

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There is a sea of healthy green smoothies out there.  I do quite a few and love them all so much.  This one I just whipped up, attempting to clean out my vegetable bin before my weekly trip to the farmer’s market tomorrow.  This smoothie is so good and so necessary.  I’m fighting a losing battle against my allergies and needed a good vitamin c punch.  This was perfect for lunch.  Plus protein-packed, thanks to Chobani, so my muscles are thankful post workout.

Ingredients:

1 cup of vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup of vanilla Chobani
2 kiwis, peeled
10 green grapes
1 giant handful of baby spinach leaves
1 teaspoon chia seeds (optional)
1 banana
10 ice cubes

Directions:

Place everything in your blender or Vitamix and blend until creamy.  Pour into glasses (makes 3-4 glasses) and top with a slice of fresh kiwi.

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Sweet Pumpkin Hummus.

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Hummus doesn’t always have to be savory.  I whipped this little dish up last fall, of course, pumpkin inspired, and I had to make it again.  I just love it!  My kids love it too with sliced apples.  In fact, I have it all ready for them when they get home from school.  Great snack and so healthy!  You have to give this one a whirl.

Ingredients:

1 -15oz can of chickpeas, drained and washed
1 heaping cup of pumpkin puree
1/4c nut butter (peanut, almond, cashew)
2 tbl canola oil
2 tbl maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp honey
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp of freshly grated ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

Blend it all in your food processor until hummus consistency. Serve with apples, crackers, graham crackers, gingersnaps etc.

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Fresh tomato & pepper pasta salad with lime jalapeño vinaigrette.

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I’m starting to think vegetarianism in the summer is really my thing.  I have no stomach for heavier meals and with the thermostat creeping close to 100 degrees ~ this dinner was perfection!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice
3 tablespoon of olive oil
2 tsp of ground cumin
Pinch of salt and pepper
1/4 cup of cilantro leaves
1 half jalapeño, chopped
1-2 cups of chopped cherry tomatoes
2 large green, yellow, orange or red peppers – chopped
3 corn on the cob corn kernels, cut from the cob
10 ounces or so of pasta, cooked

Directions:

Combine the first six ingredients and combine in a blender or with your hand immersion blender.   Adjust the flavors according to your taste.  Season and set aside.

Add your cooked, cooled pasta to a large bowl and add your tomatoes, chopped peppers and corn kernels.  Add the dressing and toss.  Serve at room temperature or chilled.

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