Tag Archives: Recipes

Slow Cooker Thai Tofu & Lettuce Wraps from the Leftovers

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I saw a recipe pop up for slow cooker Thai chicken the other day and I realized that I had all the ingredients on hand to make a vegetarian (actually vegan!) version. YAY!  It looked easy, tasty and I thought I’d give it a go. The results did not disappoint. It truly was easy and it tasted amazing. Final icing on the cake? I was able to put my leftovers to good use by making them into lettuce wraps the next night at dinner!

A couple of things of note…  I ate it before I took a picture of it. So, just take my word for it that it looks good too. Also, the 1 Tbsp of saracha in the recipe makes it pretty hot. If you don’t like spicy foods, I’d drop it down to just 1/2 Tbsp.  If you’re not a tofu fan, you can also adapt this same recipe to use a Faux Chicken product such as Quorn Chik’n Cutlets or Gardein Chick’n Scallopini.

Slow Cooker Thai Tofu

Serves 4. Recipe based off of Shrinking Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • 4 Tbsp PB2 (or 1/4 cup of peanut butter)
  • 3/4 cup light coconut milk
  • 1 Tbsp Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (use 1/2 Tbsp if you like less heat)
  • 2 Tbsp lime juice
  • 1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar
  • 2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
  • 1 package extra firm Tofu, sliced in 1/2 inch slabs
  • 1/3 cup chopped peanuts, for topping
  • 4 Tbsp chopped cilantro, for topping
  • 1/2 cup bean sprouts, for topping
  • 8oz Whole wheat pasta
  • 1 cup shredded carrots

Directions:

  1. Combine PB2 or peanut butter with coconut milk in a medium bowl.
  2. Add in Sriracha (or less), lime juice, soy sauce, sugar, and ginger. Stir well to combine.
  3. Coat the tofu with the mixture and place in a slow cooker. Pour half of the remaining mixture into the slow cooker. Retain the other half in the refrigerator for use later.
  4. Cook on high for 2 1/2 – 3 hours or low for 4 – 5ish hours.
  5. Cook and drain the pasta. Heat remaining peanut sauce and carrots in the pasta pot, cooking over medium heat until well combined and carrots are slightly limp. Add the pasta back to the pot and stir well to combine.
  6. Serve tofu over the top of the pasta. Top with chopped peanuts and cilantro.

 

Thai Tofu Lettuce Wraps from the leftovers

Ingredients:

  • Leftover Thai Tofu (recipe above)
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/2 can water chestnuts, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup green onions, for topping
  • Leftover bean sprouts, for topping
  • Leftover cilantro, for topping
  • Lettuce leaves (iceburg, romaine or green leaf), washed and dried

Directions:

  1. Cut the leftover tofu into cubes. Heat over medium heat along with carrots and water chestnuts.
  2. When it’s heated through, add green onions and serve with lettuce leaves, bean sprouts and cilantro.
  3. Eat by placing a bit of the tofu mixture into the lettuce leaf, roll it into a wrap and devour!

Kale Lemon Pasta with Vegetarian (Faux) Chicken

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Lemon Kale Pasta with Faux Chicken

I visited my dear friend A in New York a couple of months ago and she served up almost exactly this dish (without the faux chicken). I loved it so much that I knew I needed to try it again … Continue reading →

Mixed Berry Granola. Low Fat. Low Sugar.

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I love sprinkling granola over the top of my yogurt in the morning or as an afternoon snack. I usually eat plain yogurt with fruit, so the added sweetness of the granola helps take the ‘bite’ out of my unsweetened yogurt. The problem I was having is this… Most granolas purchased in the store are filled with more oil and sugars that I prefer, not to mention they are usually fairly pricy! So, I tackled it myself.

I gravitate to granola on the fruitier side and one of my favorites is Trader Joe’s Lowfat Mixed Berry Granola, which I still buy it in a pinch. Here is my rendition of Mixed Berry Granola.

Mixed Berry Granola. Low Fat. Low Sugar.

Mixed Berry Granola. (low fat, low sugar)

Approx 20 servings. (2Tbsp per serving)

  • 3 cups Oats
  • 1/4 cup Slivered Almonds
  • 1/4 c Applesauce, unsweetened
  • 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil, warmed til it’s a liquid
  • 2 Tbsp Honey (Vegans can use agave syrup or brown rice syrup)
  • 2 Tbsp Strawberry Jam (no sugar added, preferred)
  • 1 tea flaxseed meal (optional)
  • 1 tea Vanilla
  • Dash of Salt
  • 1 cup Freeze Dried Mixed Berries or Strawberries, lightly crumbled

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 F
  2. Mix all ingredients together except Freeze Dried Fruit until well combined and oats are moist.
  3. Spread the mixture in a 9×13 pan or on a cookie sheet.
  4. Bake 30-45 mins, until browned and crunchy. If it’s still not brown and crisp at the end of 45 mins, mix and continue baking, checking every 5 mins.
  5. Cool completely. Add Freeze Dried Fruit, mix well.

Nutrition (Approx 2 Tbsp) (approx): 80 cal, 2.5g fat, 13g carb, 2g fiber, 2g protein

Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Brownies

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I wanted brownies, but I wanted something a little more natural and healthier. By healthier, I don’t necessarily mean “low fat” or “weight loss friendly”. Instead, I mean using natural, whole ingredients and using no animal products.

Rarely do I venture out on my own completely to make up recipes for baked goods. I realize that baking is definitely more of a science than cooking, so the chances of botching the whole thing is relatively high. But for this one, I went out on a limb and tackled making up a recipe – quite literally from scratch. This limb was worth the climb! These brownies resulted in a rich, tasty, satisfying brownie with chocolaty, peanut butter goodness and undertones of banana. So, if you’re wanting a lovely sweet treat free of refined sugars or dairy, I recommend you try this one out next time.

Vegan Peanut Butter Banana Brownies

Ingredients

  • 2 Bananas, very ripe, mashed
  • 1/2 c coconut oil
  • 1/2 c honey or brown rice syrup
  • 2 t vanilla
  • 1/4 c + 2 Tbsp almond milk, unsweetened
  • 1 1/2 c whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1/2 c peanut flour (or PB2)
  • 2/3 c cocoa powder (dutch processed preferred)
  • 2 t baking powder

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 350 F. Spray an 8×8 or 9×9 pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. Combine all wet ingredients together (banana, coconut oil, honey/brown rice syrup, vanilla, almond milk) in a large bowl. Whisk or sift together all dry ingredients (wheat flour, peanut flour, cocoa powder, baking powder).
  3. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until combined. Spread batter into your pan.
  4. Bake 20-25 mins. Watch it carefully to insure it does not over-bake and become dry.
  5. Allow it to cool in the pan before slicing into 12 pieces.

Nutrition (approx): 225 cal, 11g fat, 31g carb, 4g fiber, 5g protein

Chocolate Chip VitaMuffin or VitaTops Copycat Recipe

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Vitalicious products are expensive. There’s no way around that. At a local grocer, a box of 6 VitaMuffins or VitaTops are likely to set you back $6, maybe less if you were lucky enough to catch a sale. Either way, it’s expensive at right around $1 each muffin. The good thing is they are all natural, low in fat and calories and high in fiber. They are a tasty, chocolate-y treat.

So, why do we have to pay them to make them when we can make them ourselves at home, right? Ah, a recipe. That’s what’s missing.Oh wait… But I have one right here for you!

This recipe tastes surprisingly close to the VitaMuffin/VitaTop version. It does have that same slightly ‘healthy’ undertone to it, so if you’re looking for a really decadent chocolate muffin, this isn’t it. But don’t let that detour you from trying it out. If you’re wanting a sweet, healthier treat, this will definitely do the trick. Especially heated up with a little low-fat vanilla ice cream over the top. Yum!

It makes a fairly large batch, so I recommend freezing them and pulling them out one at a time. To freeze, I suggest you cool them down twice before moving them to the freezer. Cool them completely on the counter, then move them to fridge to chill. Finally, seal them up really well and freeze. When you’re ready to eat a frozen one, simply microwave it for 30-45 seconds (60 if you prefer it hot).

Now, go get in the kitchen, you chocolate-loving vitamuffin/vitatop people, and whip up your own batch!

(Sorry, no pictures of this one. I’ve been meaning to make another batch so I can snap a few, but I haven’t been able to and I didn’t want to hold out any longer, so I’ll just show you a picture of chocolate and hope that suffices for now until I can come back and add a photo.)

Chocolate Chip Muffins (or tops)

Makes approx 36 mini muffins.

  • 1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 3 egg whites
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup fat-free half & half
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp table salt
  • 1 1/2 cup hot water
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp unflavored fiber supplement (such as Metamucil Clear & Natural)
  1. Preheat your oven to 365 F (Note: you will drop the temperature down before actually baking the muffins. Don’t forget!)
  2. Using a mini muffin tin or a muffin top pan, lightly spray the pan with a non-stick spray.
  3. Sift all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
  4. In a medium-sized bowl, combine all wet ingredients except the water.
  5. Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the water and stir until completely incorporated. Do not over-stir.
  6. Divide batter between muffin tins and sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of each.
  7. Put your muffins in the oven and CHANGE the temperature to 350 F. Bake 8-10 mins, or until toothpick comes out clean. Do not over-bake or they will get very dry. Let cool for 15 mins on a wire rack.

Nutrition (approx): 70 calories. 1g fat. 14g carb. 1g fiber. 1g protein.

Late Night Snack Ice Cream & My Healthy(er) Swap

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Oh, Ben & Jerry’s. You’ve done it again. As if one of my all time favorites, Phish Food weren’t enough, you go and add my weakness – sweet/salty – to your gourmet ice cream line-up. It’s in the form of “Late Night Snack” – inspired by the Jimmy Fallon’s Late Night Show. Vanilla ice cream with chocolate covered potato chips (yes, potato chips!!!), swirled with salted caramel – it’s a little taste of heaven.

According to some gossip and reports going around, Ben & Jerry’s may have ripped the flavor off of my absolute favorite ice cream place ever – Humphry Slocombe. With almost identical flavors, Humphry Slocumbe serves up their “After School Special” flavor at Spork SF restaurant.

And while I live not too crazy far from San Francisco to get a scoop of the original vanillacaramelchocolatepotatochip ice cream, my local grocer is much easier for me to go and pick up a container of the Late Night Snack version by B&J. Except the main problem is that the either one of these will ooze with at least 270 calories/15g fat.

That being said, I’m going to rip off both of them and make my own healthy(er) version.  With closer to 160 calories/7 g fat, this is a delicious substitution that will ease your late night noshing conscious.

Healthy(er) Late Night Snack Ice Cream

  • 1/2 cup  Half-the-fat Vanilla Ice Cream (or if you prefer, fat free or no sugar added types work as well)
  • 8-10 bittersweet chocolate chips (melted in a glass bowl for 45-60 seconds, then stirred)
  • 3-4 baked potato chips, crushed (I prefer baked Kettle Brand chips)

Simply, drizzle the chocolate over the top of your scoop of ice cream and sprinkle the crushed potato chips over the top.

Happy Spring!

Strawberry Cupcakes

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Always up for a challenge, I accepted the call to make a strong strawberry flavored cupcake… So, at my friend’s special request, here it is!

After trying a few but not being satisfied with the weak strawberry flavor, my friend challenged me to find a yummy strawberry cupcake recipe that she can use. After a few failed batches and lots of internet searching, I finally settled on doing my own conglomerate using one of my favorite vanilla cupcakes as a base and modifying from there. To send the strawberry flavor over the top, I made a rich strawberry frosting to swirl over each cupcake.

The secret ingredient? Freeze-dried strawberries!  All the flavor, none of the watery strawberry goo that messes with the texture! If you’re not familiar with freeze-dried strawberries, you can usually find them at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s.

I was pleased with the results!

Strawberry Cupcakes

 

Strawberry Cupcakes

A Cupcake CoThese Cupcakes are available at A Cupcake Co.

Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

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Holiday baking has begun! Spicy, pumpkin-y, deliciousness all wrapped up in one little whoopie pie. Smooth cream cheese frosting sandwiched between two moist, fluffy pumpkin cookies. Amazing.

What’s the history of the whoopie pie? The legend goes that Amish women would send them with the farmers in their lunch and upon discovery, they would say “whoopie!”  And I think these delightful fall-inspired pumpkin whoopie pies will inspire the same exclamation!

WHOOPIE!!!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Recipe from Martha Stewart
Makes 24 minis

Pumpkin Cookies:
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Filling:
  • 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  1. Make the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat; set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined. Add pumpkin puree and whisk until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined. Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.
  3. Using a melon baller (or teaspoon), drop approx 48 heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cookie comes out clean, about 12-15 minutes. Let cool completely on pan.
  4. Make the filling: Sift confectioner’ sugar into a medium bowl; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth. Add cream cheese and beat until well combined. Add confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, beat just until smooth. (Filling can be made up to a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate; let stand at room temperature to soften before using.)
  5. Assemble the whoopie pies: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Transfer filling to a disposable pastry bag and snip the end. When cookies have cooled completely, pipe a large dollop of filling on the flat side of half of the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies, pressing down slightly so that the filling spreads to the edge of the cookies. Transfer to prepared baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate cookies at least 30 minutes before serving and up to 3 days.

Lowfat “Hummingbird Bread” (aka Pineapple Banana Bread)

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I’m always looking for new ways to use my over-ripe bananas. Usually it’s just a basic banana bread. But that gets boring after a while. I was inspired by a Hummingbird Cake recipe on Martha Stewart’s site and decided to make my own lowfat version. In making it lowfat, I knew the texture would end up being more of a bread than a ‘cake’, so I put it in a loaf pan and am calling it Hummingbird Bread. I also left out the nuts to keep it lowfat, but feel free to add pecans to the batch if you’d prefer.

I LOVE this recipe because it’s SO incredibly easy! Literally throw everything in a bowl, mix and bake. My husband is addicted. I can’t keep the stuff in the house.

Lowfat Hummingbird Bread (aka Pineapple Banana Bread)

Serves 12

  • 3 cups self-rising flour
  • 1 1/2 cups Splenda
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 bananas, mashed
  • 1 cup crushed pineapple, with juice
  • 1 t vanilla
  • 1 t cinnamon
  • 5 egg whites
  1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly spray 2 loaf pans with nonstick spray.
  2. Mix all ingredients together until just combined. Divide batter between pans. Bake 40 mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before sliding a knife around the edges and inverting the bread onto a plate.
  3. Optional: Make a cream cheese frosting for the top out of light cream cheese (approx 4 Tbsp), powdered sugar (approx 1/3 cup), vanilla and a bit of milk (approx 2 Tbsp).

Nutrition (without frosting): 185 cal, 0.4g fat, 40.4g carb, 1.8 fiber, 13.8g sugars, 5g protein

Chewy Trail Mix Granola Bars

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I’m a huge fan of Kashi TLC Granola Bars. My husband and I buy them in bulk at Costco for quick grab-n-go snacks. I know that granola bars really aren’t that difficult to make. The problem was I’d never found a recipe I really liked. They usually ended up being too crunchy (I like chewy bars), too dense, too high fat, or too – I don’t know – Just “too”!

Until I found a couple of key ingredients that has helped me turn the corner in the elusive perfect granola bar recipe – Peanut Flour (aka PB2) and Brown Rice Syrup.  The peanut flour helps keep them together and adds a lovely protein punch and the brown rice syrup is thick and sticky enough to keep them chewy.

They are still “too”. This time, they’re “too good” and I can’t stop eating them. :)

I love these and I hope you do “too”… Have fun playing with the ingredients. The base recipe works, so whatever you want to toss in to your own preference, have at it!

Chewy Trail Mix Granola Bars

Makes 8 bars

  • 1 cup oats
  • 1 cup high fiber cereal (Trader Joe’s or Fiber One) OR 1 cup of unsweetened, whole grain cereal of your choice
  • 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
  • 2 Tbsp agave nectar
  • 1 t olive oil
  • 1/4 cup lowfat peanut flour or PB2
  • 1/4 t kosher or sea salt
  • 1/4 cup sliced almonds
  • 1/4 cup dried cranberries (or other dried fruits)
  • 1/8 cup mini dark chocolate chips (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Generously spray a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick spray.
  2. Spread oats and almonds over a baking sheet.  Bake for 10-15 mins, stirring once midway through. When the almonds have turned slightly darker and are fragrant, remove from oven.
  3. While oats and almonds are baking, combine brown rice syrup, agave nectar, olive oil, peanut flour and sea salt in a large bowl.
  4. Remove oats and almonds. Turn oven down to 300 F
  5. Place hot oats and almonds in the syrup bowl, add fiber cereal and cranberries stirring until completely coated.  Pour mixture into loaf pan.
  6. Using the back of a spoon that has been lightly sprayed with nonstick spray, lightly press the mixture into the pan until the top is smooth and the mixture is slightly compressed. Do not press down too much or your bars will be to dense, but if you don’t compress them slightly, they will fall apart. Sprinkle mini chocolate chips over the top.
  7. Bake for 20 mins. Remove from oven and let cool for approx 20 mins. Slide a knife around the edges of the pan and very gently (so as not to lose all your chocolate chips) invert the pan onto your hand or cutting board. Slice into 8 even bars.

Nutrition: 140 cal, 3g fat, 27g carb, 5.5g fiber, 4g protein