Knead to Cook

Food & fitness obsessed girl.

Baked Apple Chips.

by Filed Under: Fruit, Snacks, Vegetarian 10 Comments

Today is September 3rd.  Summer weather is still lingering but the hopes for the crisp fall air are palpable.  I, myself, cannot wait for the chill in the air, cozy sweaters, jeans and the leaves to dazzle me with their vibrance.  School, for us, starts tomorrow.  The smells of freshly sharpened pencils and the excitement are abound!  Today, we chose to pick apples… my favorites tart green & Honeycrisps.

Once we got home, I promptly pulled out my mandoline and started slicing.  Apple chips were on the brain and the perfect snack to pack in lunches tomorrow.  These are super easy, extraordinarily sweet and tart and promise to bring a smile to your face.

You can customize these how you want them.  I made three versions.  One plain, one with cinnamon and sugar and one with a powdery rub.

Ingredients:

4 apples (I used tart green granny smith type apples), washed and sliced 1/8 of an inch thick – remove seeds
Lemon juice

Rub – 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.

Cinnamon and sugar combination – I used a prepared container of cinnamon and sugar blend.

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 215 degrees.  Line 3-4 cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Drizzle the lemon juice over the top of all of the slices.  This prevents discoloring.

Then if you’re opting to do plain – place the slices in a single layer on your baking sheet.

If you’re topping with cinnamon and sugar – place on the cookie sheet and sprinkle with the mixture.

If you’re using the rub – place the cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar in a shallow bowl.  Mix.  Then place the apple slices in the mixture, dust off and place on the cookie sheet.

Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until crisp.  Keep a watchful eye after the one hour mark.  The edges will curl a bit and they will feel crispy or just about there.  Remove and let cool.  Store in a tupperware container for 2-3 days.

 

— Knead to Cook

Grilled peaches topped with vanilla yogurt & smoked honey.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit Leave a Comment

 

 

Many things make me appreciate summer… this is definitely one of them.  Grilled peaches topped with frozen vanilla yogurt and smoked honey.  It’s heavenly.

This recipe is super easy.  Cut the peaches in half and remove the stone.  Place on a hot outdoor or indoor grill (face down) for about 5-7 minutes.  Remove and top with your favorite frozen vanilla yogurt, ice cream or creme fraiche.  Chobani would also be delightful!  Then drizzle with honey (I used smoked) and enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

Peach salsa.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Dips, Fruit, Salsas & Guacamole, Side dish, Vegetarian 1 Comment

 

Eating the rainbow just got a whole lot tastier!  This fresh peach salsa is perfect alone with chips or atop chicken, pork or fish.  Tonight, it will sit along a lovely grilled pork tenderloin.

Ingredients:

2 peaches, pitted and chopped
1/4 of a red onion, diced
1/2 jalapeño, diced
1 yellow pepper, finely chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
1 handful of cilantro leaves, washed, chopped
1 lime, juiced
1 tablespoon of good quality balsamic vinegar
1 tsp of olive oil

Direction:

Add all of the ingredients to a bowl.  Toss and refrigerate for 2 hours or so to let the flavors meld.  Enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

3 Ingredient (No Bake) Energy Bars.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit, Gluten Free, Snacks, Vegetarian 8 Comments

I love energy bars but typically dislike the nutritional information.  These bars are so delicious, no bake (well you do toast the almonds) and with only 3 ingredients.  So why not get energy from real ingredients, no preservatives & something truly healthy?

Ingredients:

1 c of dried, Medjool dates that have been pitted
1 c of raw almonds
1 c of dried, tart cherries

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Place the almonds on a cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes until toasted.

In your food processor, place the pitted Medjool dates that have been pitted and the cherries.  Process until it forms a large, pasty ball.  Remove and set aside.  Then add the cooled almonds to your processor and process until they are finely chopped (avoid over processing into flour).  Your looking for small pieces.  Then add the date/cherry mixture back and blend again until all the ingredients are incorporated.

Line an 8×8 glass square baking pan with parchment or tin foil.  Place the mixture on top.  Then I added a piece of plastic wrap over the top to press it down into one even layer.  I used a small glass to even it all out.  Refrigerate for 45 minutes.  Remove and slice.  Enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

Strawberry Shortcake Shish Kabobs with fresh vanilla whipped cream.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Snacks, Valentine's Day 1 Comment

Farmer’s Market today yielded a wonderful bounty of strawberries.  They caught my eye immediately and I couldn’t resist.  Once my daughter saw them… her wheels were spinning and she made some wonderful strawberry shortcake shish kabobs, her favorite!  I got to make the whipped cream 🙂  Such a wonderful, fun dessert idea.

Ingredients:
2 pints of strawberries, wash and cut the stems off
1 angel food cake, cut up into cubes
Skewers

Directions:

Start with a strawberry and then alternate angel food cake cubes.  Add as many as you like.  You can certainly add other fruit like berries, pineapple, mangoes etc.

Whipped Cream:

Ingredients:
1 c of whipping cream
2 tbl of confectioners’ sugar
1 vanilla bean (seeds on the inside only) or 1 tsp of vanilla extract

Directions:

In your stand mixer, with the whisk attached, pour in the whipping cream and beat.  I typically beat this for about 1 minutes then add the sugar and vanilla.  Beat on medium to high until it takes on a whipped cream consistency.  Serve immediately .

Served on the side as a dip for the shish kabobs.

— Knead to Cook

Low fat Chobani Raspberry Brownies.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit, Valentine's Day, Vegetarian 3 Comments

I admit, I’ve never been a brownie fan but these may convert me!  I wanted to create a moist, lower fat brownie using my favorite ingredient, Chobani & add a bit of freshness to it by tossing in some gorgeous organic raspberries I purchased this morning.  The result is quite surprising.  The chocolate has a deep, rich flavor, almost like a decadent hot chocolate and the tart/sweet blend of the raspberries just makes these totally scrumptious!
Ingredients:

2/3 c of granulated sugar
1/3 c of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter (at room temperature)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 egg, room temperature
1/3 c of all purpose flour (unbleached)
1/3 c + 1 tsp of Dutch processed cocoa powder (I used my local favorite – Wilbur)
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/4 c of non fat Chobani yogurt
1/4 c of fresh, washed and very dry raspberries

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350.  Preheat for at least 30 minutes.  Spray your glass 8×8 pan with non stick flour baking spray.

In your stand mixer with the paddle attached, blend the sugar and I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter until light and fluffy.  Add the extract and the egg.  Blend well.  In a separate bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and cinnamon.  Add to the mixer bowl.  Mix until blended.  Then fold in the Chobani yogurt by hand.  Mix well.


Pour half of your brownie mixture into the bottom of the pan.  Add the raspberries on top.  Then add the remaining batter.  Bake for about 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out with only a tiny bit of batter on it and the center of the brownies is more firm (versus giggly).

Remove from the oven and let cool for 40-50 minutes then slice.  Dust with confectioners’ sugar and top with additional berries.  Enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

Torta di Mele {Italian Apple Cake}

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit, Gluten Free, Vegetarian 4 Comments

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/3 cups, all-purpose or any gluten-free flour will work (I used almond flour for this recipe)
2/3 c granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 c non fat milk, almond milk or low fat milk (whatever you have on hand)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Zest of 2 lemons
6 medium apples, cored and peeled

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray your springform pan with non stick baking spray and set aside.

In your mixing bowl with the whisk attachment on, whisk the sugar and eggs.  Next, add in the flour, milk, baking powder, baking soda and zest. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.

Peel and core each of the apples. One apple will need to be diced up and dropped into the prepared batter.  The other apples can be sliced in 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices and placed along the top (spiral pattern).  The apples will sink into the batter a bit but the more apples you layer, they will become more visible.  Mist the top of the cake with some olive oil.  Then dust with granulated sugar (about a tablespoon).  This will caramelize on the top giving it a great texture.  Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

 

— Knead to Cook

Snack attack plan!

by Filed Under: Fruit, Snacks, Vegetarian Leave a Comment

I promise, with a little bit of time, you will be ready any time you are craving a snack!  You plan & organize your life… why not your snack?  You will be more likely to eat healthy if you surround yourself with good food.  Happy 2012!!!  You deserve it!

— Knead to Cook

Mixed fruit & spinach protein smoothie

by Filed Under: Breakfast, Fruit, Smoothies, Snacks 1 Comment

Okay I have one child that lives to eat & one that eats to live!  My youngest daughter doesn’t have a huge appetite ever!  So, with that, I try to make every bite as vitamin packed & healthy as possible.  This smoothie is super healthy & delicious.  I promise… the kids have no idea how good it is for them!
In a blender, add a handful of baby spinach leaves, two cups of fruit – frozen, fresh – whatever.  I added peaches/strawberries/cherries & 1 banana.  I scoop of Whey protein powder.  Optional – you can add a scoop or two of low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream (I normally do this but didn’t today) or a scoop of yogurt.  I also add one cup of almond milk (you can use regular low fat milk) and 2 tsp of flax seed meal and then start to blend it.  My blender has a smoothie setting so I use that.  Once it starts to combine, I will drizzle more milk in to get the consistency that I wish to achieve.  Pour into a glass, add a straw and enjoy!

There is so much flexibility that you have when making smoothies.  You can go all green – spinach, green apples, avocados etc.  You can add or delete what you like.  Have fun with it but my only suggestion is if you’re adding the spinach… whip the smoothie up before the kids see it 🙂

— Knead to Cook

Fresh Mango Banana Smoothie

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Desserts, Fruit, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian 2 Comments

My daughter had a herbst appliance put in her mouth today by our orthodontist & knowing how painful this must be, I decided to make her a liquid after-school snack to help.  I took my mango pitter – the best tool for removing a mango pit by far – & peeled the remaining flesh.  Toss that in your blender with 4 scoops of low or non-fat vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt, 1 ripe banana & 3/4 c of low fat milk or almond milk.  I also throw in some flaxseed meal (2 tbl).  Blend that in your blender (mine has a smoothie setting).  And pour into glasses with a straw.  This makes two large servings.

 

— Knead to Cook