Food & fitness obsessed girl.
I have an abundance of ripe bananas in my kitchen right now. I’ve whipped up some smoothies and next up with a healthy banana bread as an after-school snack. This bread is packed with protein, courtesy of my favorite Greek yogurt, healthier oil instead of butter and a reduced amount of sugar. Pipping hot from the oven, my family couldn’t wait to dig in and it was well-received by all. Think of this as breakfast, snack or dessert! It is so good.
— Knead to Cook
My friends over at Oh Nuts! sent me a care package of some of their products. I’ve been a long-standing customer, I love their nuts/dried fruits, and was thrilled to start making some favorite recipes with their goodies. I’ve been meaning to whip up some granola bars that are very clean and wanted something that would have a good consistency and not be overly sweet. I’ve been eating clean, no refined sugars amongst other things for eight months now with huge changes to my body and the way I feel. PLUS, I prefer my family eat non-processed foods/snacks and they love granola so it was a must. These make a great road-trip snack idea too! We are headed out for two trips this week and I will have these on hand for the beach! [Read more…]
— Knead to Cook
It’s berry season!!! This, in my mind, is a BIG reason to celebrate. Everyone in my family can seriously just eat and eat berries without ceasing. Today, on our way home from swim practice I thought we would swing by our favorite berry farm to see what goodies they had to sell. My youngest and I were quite pleased to find black, red and blue berries. I have to admit, we started eating them on the way home… lack of restraint for certain. So then my mind started racing… a berry buckle, cobbler, tart… no let’s make a pie! Triple berry sounded lovely. I rushed off to the store and bought my very special Irish butter and organic cream (needed for whipping later) and I got to work. Now I have to admit, I have been eating and preparing cleaner dishes for my family however there are just some recipes that I cannot “healthify” (yes I know, not a real word) but there are just some recipes that you don’t tinker with, plain and simple. This recipe for crust is very old and I cherish it. It is certainly indulgent but not something you eat everyday – it’s just that…. a summer treat. Perfect for the 4th of July too!
I love the rustic looking crust. Not perfect but unique to itself. It smells heavenly and now I better go and whip up some fresh whipped cream for topping this beauty.
— Knead to Cook
I’ve been a die-hard Crumbs Cupcake fan before it was trendy. I always would hit up the store while in NYC or have my husband go for me if he was there on business. It got to the point that my friends were waiting with bated breath when they knew I was coming home because I would bring some cupcakes home for them. A few Christmases ago, they came out with a kid’s cookbook sort of kit with baking tools and fun recipe cards. I instantly bought it for my Crumbs-loving daughter. I treat this recipe like gold. I only make it on special occasions and after looking at the ingredient list, you will quickly find out why. It ISN’T healthy and very well may hike up your cholesterol level but on a special day… it is truly worth an extra hour or 3 at the gym! Consider yourself warned!
— Knead to Cook
This was my inaugural recipe made in my new Magimix Compact 3200 xl and oh how I love it! It is by far the quietest appliance in my kitchen. Worked efficiently and is a stunner in my new kitchen. Plus love that I can select which bowl I need to use v. just using one large bowl to make a smaller batch of a recipe. Another great feature – it works quickly. Within a few pulses, my hummus was creamy perfection. I, like most, don’t have a lot of time to waste in the kitchen. This certainly makes my life easier. LOVE! Okay now onto the recipe…
It was a really crazy day to say the least. I wanted to make a super fun snack for my youngest daughter who started at a new private school today. This has her name written all over it!!! Cookie butter + peanut butter + chocolate = Instant JOY! Plus it’s hummus and it’s packed with protein, potassium and fiber for the joy of mom/dad!
Ingredients:
1 16 oz can of low sodium Garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup of cookie butter (Trader Joe’s or Biscoff)
1/4 cup of peanut or other nut butter
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon of coconut oil
1/4 cup of honey, agave or maple syrup
Chocolate Chips
Directions:
Into your food processor add the first 6 ingredients and blend until nice and creamy. This will take about 2 minutes or so. Then by hand, blend in the chocolate chip (mini chips work well too).
Serve with graham crackers, apples or vanilla wafers.
— Knead to Cook
I make these red and green biscotti every Christmas. I just love the red and green combination of the tart cherries and the green pistachios. Biscotti are super easy to make, although take a bit of time because of the double baking. But the end result is so worth it.
My grandmother always used cornmeal in her biscotti recipe and it just adds a different texture that makes these cookies undeniably a favorite. I hope you get a chance to whip these up before Christmas next week. The batch does make a fair amount, depending on how thick or thin you slice them. And they keep for several days. Perfect for dunking in tea, coffee or hot chocolate this season.
Ingredients:
2 cups of all purpose flour (I use King Arthur’s unbleached ap)
3/4 cup of stone ground corn meal
1.5 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
3 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup of pistachios (shelled and roughly chopped) – you can use more or less
1/2 cup of dried tart cherries ( you can always use dried cranberries if you have them on hand)
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and line your baking pan with a Silpat or parchment paper. Set aside.
In a dry mixture bowl combine, the flour, cornmeal, powder and salt together with a whisk.
In your stand mixer, blend your sugar and eggs together for 2-3 minutes or until fluffy. Then add in the dry mixture. Blend for 1 minute then add the nuts/cherries. Blend until combined. The dough will be sticky. Wet your hands prior to removing the dough from the mixer, this will help you to work better with it. Divide the dough in half. Place both halves on your cookie sheet and shape into a 12 inch by 2.5 inch log. Press the dough down to a thickness of about an inch or so.
Bake the dough for 32-34 minutes or until it starts getting a golden brown edge. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes. Then with a serrated knife, slice diagonal about 1/2-3/4 of an inch thick. You don’t want it too thick or too thin so eyeball it. Take each slice and lay it cut side down on your baking sheet. They can be butted up against one another. You can fit all of the slices on one cookie sheet using your space wisely. Bake again for 20-24 minutes. The cookies should be toasted and as they cool, will get a bit crunchier. Store in a ziploc baggie or tupperware. Great for sending in a care package or as a gift for friends and neighbors.
— Knead to Cook
Take one single serving of vanilla or plain Chobani. Divide it in half placing each in a separate bowl. Add either strawberries or raspberries (handful) into the one bowl. Using a hand immersion blender, blend it until all of the berries are blended. Then add kiwi (I used two) to the other bowl and repeat with the hand immersion blender. Layer in a cute bowl and top with extra fruit of nuts (I used sliced kiwi and chopped pistachios). Chill until serving. Kids love it and it won’t blow all of your gym efforts!
— Knead to Cook
This could be the quintessential PMS cookie. Salt, sugar… it’s perfection. Even if you don’t suffer with that lovely disorder… anyone who loves bacon will be grabbing for one of these. I don’t know why I thought it would be a great combo but it totally is and the smell is soooooo fabulous. I ate one and stepped away. I have to restrain myself or go back out to run again. 🙂 Totally fun twist on a classic.
*Adaptation from Guittard.
Ingredients:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup of butter, softened
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 tablespoons of light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
10 ounces of Guittard Super Cookie Chips or regular dark chocolate chips
4-6 strips of cooked, cooled and crumbled pieces of smoked bacon
Sea Salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, soda and salt. Set aside.
In your stand mixer, paddle attached, cream butter and sugars. Then beat in the egg and vanilla until creamy. Add the flour mixture, blend. Blend well. By hand, stir in the chocolate chips and bacon. Drop rounded cookie dough onto your baking sheet. Sprinkle a tiny bit of sea salt on top of each cookie dough ball. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden. Let cool and then store in a container with a lid.
— Knead to Cook
Who doesn’t love peppermint?! My kids LOVE it! And tomorrow starts our first winter swim meet and I’m always baking like a madwoman to prepare. The kids swim and they eat… this is what winter swim (and summer) is all about! Some healthy snacks and some decedent ones for post race celebration. These are a reason to celebrate! I promise.
Ingredients:
1 cup + 2 tablespoons of King Arthur’s all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup of Smart Balance butter (or you can use regular butter)
6 tablespoons of packed brown sugar
6 tablespoons of granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon of peppermint extract
10 ounces of chocolate chips
1 bag of individually wrapped Peppermint Patties (unwrapped)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray your 9×9 glass pan with baking spray.
In a small bowl, mix flour, soda and salt.
In your stand mixer, beat butter and both sugars for 3 minutes. Then add the egg and peppermint extract. Add the flour mixture and beat on slow until incorporated. Beat in the chocolate chips by hand.
Take half of the dough and place it in the prepared pan and smooth it out to cover the bottom. Then lay the peppermint patties over top of the cookie dough. You can spread them or butt them together. Then take the remaining dough and place it on top. It may not cover totally but it will melt and distribute. Bake for 22-24 minutes. Keep a watchful eye if they need to bake a few minutes longer depending on your oven.
*Chocolate chip cookie recipe is an adaptation from Guittard’s super cookie chip cookie recipe.
— Knead to Cook
I thought these would be a fun little snacks for kids or parties as Christmas is approaching. Plus, let’s face it, they’re a bit healthier than the traditional Christmas cookies. I made a batch of these for an after-school snack for my girls, I think they’ll love them!
Ingredients:
1 package of strawberries
4-6 ounces of white chocolate
1/4 teaspoon of vegetable oil
Crystalized sugar
1 popsicle stick or butter knife
Directions:
Melt your white chocolate however you wish (double boiler or microwave). Add the oil to keep the chocolate loose. Wash and remove the stems from the strawberries and pat dry. Lay out a piece of parchment paper so that you can place the finished strawberries on it. I used the popsicle stick to spread the cooled chocolate around the bottom edge of the strawberry. Dip it into the crystalized sugar, be careful to just cover the melted chocolate area. Then I dipped one tiny chocolate morsel in the melted chocolate and then place it on top of the strawberry to look like the pom pom. I refrigerated for 20 minutes to firm up and enjoy!
— Knead to Cook