Knead to Cook

Food & fitness obsessed girl.

Eggnog Smoothie.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Brunch, Desserts, Egg dishes, Fruit, Holiday, No bake/cooking required!, Smoothies, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free, Yogurt 2 Comments

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I have so many thoughts going through my head as I’m finally sitting down to blog this week.  First, I apologize for not blogging sooner.  Monday was spent prepping for my guest teaching gig on Tuesday.  Tuesday, I was honored to guest teach at my daughter’s high school.  I taught 7 culinary classes (164 kids) and spoke about healthy eating, carbs, Thanksgiving, being a vegetarian and pretty much anything food related.  My takeaway is that teachers and aides are grossly underpaid (I already knew this but standing in their shoes confirmed this for me).  The kids ranged in age from freshman to seniors.  Encompassed all socio-economic groups.  Athletes to  non-athletes.  It was as much a learning experience for me as it was, hopefully, for them.  My last class, I was blessed to teach my favorite freshman – my daughter.  It was, without a doubt, the highlight of my day seeing her.  My heart fills with pride every time I lay eyes on this girl who is morphing into an amazing adult.  But enough on that… here is a pic from yesterday.  Sorry to my daughter who was eating/carb loading before her two hour swim practice right after class but mama want a shot to remember the day!

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— Knead to Cook

Almond and Cookie Butter Oatmeal Protein Smoothie.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Desserts, Gluten Free, Smoothies, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free 2 Comments

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Yesterday we had an opportunity, post my half marathon, to shop at the most enormous Trader Joe’s I’ve ever been to.  It was just paradise.  Of course, my girls headed to the peanut butter aisle to grab the newest member of the cookie butter family – chocolate swirl!  I knew the requests for a smoothie would be eminent and they were.  Mondays deserve something sweet to get out of bed, right?  First thing this morning, as I hobbled down the steps carefully, the first request came in. As indulgent as it is, I put my healthy spin on it so it had some nutritional value and energize them on this dismal Monday.

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— Knead to Cook

Pineapple Spinach Yogurt Protein Smoothie.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free 4 Comments

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Sneaking vegetables into your kids has never been so easy!  I say this over and over again but your kids will not detect the spinach as the other flavors over-power it and make it virtually undetectable.  Plus, if you are trying to add more leafy greens to your diet, this is yet another fun way to do it.

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— Knead to Cook

Banana Peanut Butter Yogurt Smoothie with a twist.

by Filed Under: Breakfast, Brunch, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free, Yogurt 4 Comments

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Can’t get your kids to eat “good” foods?  How about sneaking them in to what they love?  I posted a recipe for a smoothie a few months ago that had an avocado in it and I had several people email me questioning the taste and my sanity.  Ha!  Then they tried it on their 2, 3 and 4 year olds and guess what… the kids were asking for more!  Now I don’t go telling my kids what I put in their smoothies because then they would complain or not drink them.  Today was the perfect example… my oldest daughter went to the gym yesterday to workout with my 75 year old dad.  He kicked her tush!  I got a text this morning that stated simply “I’m broken.”  Ha ha.  Now, I shouldn’t laugh but every day of my life I have a sore muscle or muscles.  The constant pursuit of fitness will yield these results.  So with a chuckle, I knew I had to make her a nice big protein smoothie to help her sore muscles rebuild.  She, along with the workers that I have in my house today installing our pool table, all gobbled it down and loved it.  None the wiser of the ingredients!

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— Knead to Cook

Blueberry Pineapple Oatmeal Smoothie.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Smoothies, Snacks, Vitamix, Yogurt 30 Comments

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We are in the throngs of swimming in our house.  That means late night meets and early morning practices.  I’ll admit, it takes a toll.  My kids rolls out of bed in the morning exhausted and not wanting to eat breakfast.  This is the perfect way to get them packed with protein, vitamins and minerals without them really paying that much attention to it.  These serve as a great pre or post workout meal, snack, lunch etc.  Add a handful of spinach or kale for more added punch (I promise you won’t taste it!).  Adapt whatever fruit you have on hand and make it your own.

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— Knead to Cook

Pineapple Mint Lassi Popsicles.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Frozen Pops, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Yogurt 1 Comment

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Typically a beverage, I turned this pineapple mint lassi into a popsicle.  A refreshing treat indeed!  The fresh sweetness of the pineapple and the zing of fresh mint from my garden make these a treat both kids and adults will love.  I also added chunks of fresh pineapple to my popsicle molds for even more tasty goodness. These cool treats boast protein, thanks to the Greek yogurt, so they also have muscle building benefits along with great vitamin impact.  Your kids won’t even know this is good for them!

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— Knead to Cook

Strawberry Peanut Butter Popsicles.

by Filed Under: 4th of July/Patriotic, Desserts, Frozen Pops, Gluten Free, Ice cream, Smoothies, Vitamix, Wheat Free 2 Comments

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Okay, I had to do it.  I took the leftover smoothies I had from yesterday and froze them with tons of fresh strawberry slices inside for the extra bonus.  The kids are gobbling them up and they are packed with vitamins and protein!  Love that!  These are super easy to do and you can find pop molds just about anywhere really inexpensively!  Great for parties too!  Last day of school and I really think I would be happy eating watermelon for dinner all summer long.  But I guess I better head off and figure that out because my family wouldn’t share my watermelon dinner passion.  The weather is lovely -so grilling it is!

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— Knead to Cook

Strawberry & Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie.

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Smoothies, Vegetarian, Vitamix 1 Comment

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It’s been a bountiful strawberry season for our garden.  Huge bowls of strawberries are being filtered into my kitchen daily.  So after my run this morning, I thought I would whip up a breakfast smoothie for my girls and I thought a peanut butter &  strawberry (a take-off of pb and j) would be a fun.  My girls loved it and drank them down in record time.  Packed with fruit, which provides necessary vitamins and energy, protein for muscles – its a great way to start the day.  A lower calorie option would be to replace the peanut butter with dried peanut butter (4 tablespoons) to reduce the fat/calories.

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— Knead to Cook

Green Oatmeal Smoothie. {that will actually fill you up and energize you}

by Filed Under: Beverages, Breakfast, Fruit, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian, Vitamix 8 Comments

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I love the concept of smoothies and juicing but the fact remains… they never EVER keep me filled more than an hour.  I have a huge appetite.  I’ve recently lost 27 lbs and really keep a watchful eye on what and how I eat.  It has greatly impacted my body.  After recently having a discussion with a dietician friend of mine, she suggested boosting up my green drink with some staying power. Ummmm okay?  I realize not all calories are made the same and I shouldn’t obsess about them.  So I asked her to make some suggestions… well that’s exactly what she did.  She told me to add oats, nuts and avoid milk or juices in it.  Well alrightyyyy then.  I shall give it a try!  And that I did.  The color is green, however not a gorgeous vibrant green, but I have to say that the taste, consistency – everything about it was different.  I actually felt more energized once I downed a glass.  Wait?!  I already have a ton of energy.  This was like hitting the pedal and flooring it!  It’s been one hour post drinking this concoction and I still feel very filled.  Hey, for me, that’s a great thing!

Ingredients:

1 cup of water
1.5 cups of spinach/kale mixture (substitutions:  cucumbers, carrots, beets)
1 cup of gluten free rolled oats
2 cups of chopped fruit (I used watermelon, strawberries, one frozen banana)
1/4 cup of sunflower seeds (almonds, walnuts, pecan – whatever you have on hand)
Add 4 ice cubes

Directions:

Into your Vitamix or blender, add the water first and then all of the subsequent ingredients.  Blend until smooth.  This recipe made about 2.5 large servings.

— Knead to Cook

Chocolate Avocado Smoothie. Vegan. (Tastes like pudding!)

by Filed Under: Breakfast, Desserts, Smoothies, Snacks, Valentine's Day, Vegan, Vegan proteins, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free 11 Comments

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I know you’re thinking I must be crazy, right?!  I was hesitant when I ran across this recipe in one of my mags that I had.  I thought why not try it, my youngest daughter is so underweight that the calories (all good) would be a great start to the day.  Protein, good fats… it’s all good.  Both of my girls loved it!  I snuck a taste and it tasted like pudding – even had that consistency to be honest.  I put them on table, started making my breakfast and the next thing I heard was slurping sounds coming from their straws. Enough said!

Ingredients:

Makes 2 – 2 cup servings

1 ripe avocado, halved and pitted
2 cups of vanilla unsweetened cashew or almond milk (I prefer Silk)
2 tablespoons of raw cacao powder
2 tablespoons of maple syrup
1 tablespoons of vegan chocolate chips
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
14 ice cubes

Directions:

Into your blender or Vitamix, add all of the ingredients.  Blend until creamy.  This will have a thick, pudding like appearance.  Pour slowly into  your glasses.  Top with a few chocolate chips.  Enjoy!

Eeek!  Chocolate for breakfast and it is oh so good!

*Adapted from Eating Well.

— Knead to Cook