Tag Archives: food

Apple-Oat Muffins with Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Swirl

Are you one of those people who sometimes skips breakfast because you hit snooze one too many times and you just don’t have time to eat it?  Or you end up grabbing a calorie-loaded bagel or greasy egg sandwich because it’s quick?  That’s me!  When you are watching your weight, breakfast can be hard.  I love making muffins because they are tasty, filling and already portion controlled.  These Apple-Oat Muffins with Brown-Sugar Swirl are low in calories, full of flavor, and can start your day off right.  These muffins use whole-wheat flour and oats in place of some of the white flour to help boost fiber and keep you fuller longer.  Applesauce helps keep these muffins moist without adding fat and cinnamon and cloves give them spice.  Muffins easily freeze well too so if you can’t eat 12 muffins (or 24 mini-muffins) in a week, throw them in a freezer bag for later and just give them a quick pop in the microwave for a fresh muffin whenever you want it!

The ingredients:

In a large bowl, combine flours, oats, sugar, baking powder, 1/2 of the cinnamon, baking soda, salt and cloves.  Create a well in the center and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix remaining cinnamon, brown sugar, and water until brown sugar is dissolved.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine milk, applesauce, egg, oil and vanilla.  Pour mixture into well of dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

 

Fold in diced apple.

 

Spoon batter into a muffin tin and top each muffin with the brown sugar-cinnamon mixture.  Use a toothpick to swirl the mixture into each muffin.

 

Bake in a 400ºF oven for 12 minutes.

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source:  Shape Magazine

Oven-Roasted Green Beans

I’ve become a big fan of fresh green beans.  I remember eating canned green beans a lot as a kid and now I won’t even touch them.  Fresh green beans are so much better and now that most grocery stores carry steam-in-bag green beans, they can be made in no time.  I never thought about roasting green beans until I came across this recipe for Oven-Roasted Green Beans.  Fresh green beans are tossed with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper and roasted in the oven for 8 minutes.  The green beans come out so crisp and flavorful that they will complement any meal.  These don’t take much longer to make than microwaved green beans and they are so much better! 

The ingredients:

Place trimmed green beans in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil.

Sprinkle salt and pepper over the beans and toss until all the beans are seasoned.

Lay the beans flat on a baking sheet and roast in a 425°F oven for 8 minutes.

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall rating:  Love It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

Baked Chocolate and Banana Ravioli

I’ve been very good (and very disciplined) on my diet but since it’s Valentine’s Day, I think it’s okay to splurge a little and have something chocolatey, don’t you think?  I found a recipe for a fried version of Chocolate and Banana Ravioli on Food Network’s website so I decided to adapt it to something a little healthier.  These Baked Chocolate and Banana Ravioli are baked, not fried, and include nothing else but chocolate-hazelnut spread, bananas, and walnuts.  Simple.  Since bananas are already naturally sweet, I didn’t see any reason to include additional sugar.  These have a yummy banana flavor and the Nutella is creamy and rich making these taste decadent without being terribly fattening.  If you don’t like Nutella, you could easily swap it out with your favorite chocolate chips or regular peanut-butter.  Eat these as-is, with a little bit of chocolate or caramel dipping sauce or a light dusting of powdered sugar.

Baked Chocolate and Banana Ravioli (makes 16 ravioli)

Recipe adapted from Food Network

  • 1 medium banana
  • 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/3 cup Nutella
  • 16 wonton wrappers
  • non-stick spray

The ingredients:

Cut up the banana into small pieces or mash it in a bowl.

Add in chopped walnuts.

Lay out a wonton on a flat surface.  Place one teaspoon of chocolate-hazelnut spread into the center of the wonton.

Add one teaspoon of the banana mixture into the center of the wonton.

Using your finger or a pastry brush, brush the edges of the wonton with water.  Fold one corner over to the opposite corner and press the edges together.

Place ravioli on a parchment-lined baking sheet coated with non-stick spray.  Spray the tops of each ravioli with non-stick spray also and bake in a 350ºF oven for 11 minutes until golden brown.

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