Strawberry Sherbet

This looks yummy! I love that they use buttermilk - a great way to add a creamy tanginess without adding a bunch of fat.

Check out the recipe {here}

Don't forget to enter the giveaway {here}

Coconut Oil: Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Made from pressing oil from the coconut fruit, coconut oil is a huge trend right now. Although, it is over 90% saturated fat nearly 50% of the this oil is lauric acid. Lauric acid is used by our bodies as an antifungal, antibiotic, and antioxidant. There are numerous health claims made by various coconut entities which include increased immunity, proper digestion and metabolism, and healthy skin, hair, and nails. One interesting thing, coconut oil contains no cholesterol so, it is a better alternative to butter. Coconut oil is mainly used in baking a sauteing.

I bought some coconut oil back in January for a Healthy Recipe Contest that we had at work.

I decided to experiment again and here is what I came up with:

2/3 cup coconut oil, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats, ground
1 1/2 cups whole wheat white flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 6-ounce unsweetened dried cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chunks or chips

Cream oil and sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Combine dry ingredients and add in slowly. Stir in cranberries and chocolate chips. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

First Birthday Party

My daughter's first birthday was over a month ago, but I still wanted to post about it. I love looking at party blogs, but sometimes all they serve is sugar...cake, cookies, candy, frosted marshmallows. It all looks beautiful, but is too much. You don't have to give up the sweets, I'm not that crazy. Although, I did hear of some parents who gave their kid a block of cheese instead of cake...interesting. Anyway, serve one favorite treat and make sure there are some fresh fruits and veggies to snack on. I love to bake, so I make sure I use good quality ingredients. I stay away from boxed mixes that contain preservatives and such. When I am serving a group of people it can be hard {budget wise} to feed them foods that I typically recommend. I just pick and choose what is most important, bake from scratch, ask for help, and make reasonable portions.

We had a baby farm animal theme. I made a cow print cake for the birthday girl and...

marble cupcakes which was perfect, I didn't need to use artificial food coloring.

I ordered these cute cupcake toppers from {here.}

I was dead set on making pigs in a blanket, probably one of the most unhealthy things you can make. But, I couldn't think of anything that better suited my theme. I made due. I wanted to get hot dogs from Whole Foods, but that was too pricy. So, I bought turkey dogs and cut them into thirds, making them the perfect portion. Instead of croissant dough I used puff pastry dough which doesn't contain partially hydrogenated oils.

My mother and mother-in-law brought the veggies and strawberries.

We also served hormone-free chocolate milk.

I had to have pink paper straws.

As a "thank-moo" the kids could make their own snack mix or "little chickie feed" with pretzels, raisins, Annie's Cheddar Bunnies, Back to Nature Madagascar Vanilla mini cookies, etc.

Overall, I think it was a success!

What are your favorite {healthy and budget-friendly} ways to entertain?

Not so bad...

I don't know about the rest of you, but where we live frozen yogurt is quite the buzz. When I was younger I remember Golden Spoon. Then, it disappeared and now it is back. On the top of the nutritional list is Red Mango (my personal favorite), but pretty pricey. Plus, the closest one is about ten minutes away. Ten minutes may not seem that far, but our family favorite is just around the corner... Yogurt Vibes is our treat and we go there once per week, I promise. It's the self serve kind, so I easily eat about a cup and a half of yogurt every time I go. Therefore, I must remember to times all the amounts on the nutrition facts by three. All the self-serve places offer the same frozen yogurt from YoCream. Looking at the nutrition facts, it's not too bad even for a weekly treat. Pinkberry is surprisingly high. Check out all the nutrition facts...

Pinkberry

YoCream

Red Mango

Last night we went for family night. My husband suggested it, perhaps it had something to do with him going meatless all day!

Dessert

I really, REALLY love dessert. My favorites include brownies, ice cream, frozen yogurt, Sweet Tooth Fairy cupcakes, {good} bread pudding, certain cheesecakes, cream cheese frosting, Nothing Bundt Cakes...I could go on and on. Truth be told, if I could be HEALTHY and trim I would have dessert twice a day+. Obviously, that's not going to happen {although it has before}. In my opinion, there is limited space for "healthy" desserts. I always tell clients, "If I am going to have a brownie, I want a chewy, fudgey brownie made with rich chocolate and butter. Not a fat-free, sugar-free, high fiber brownie."

Michael Pollan said, "Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself." It takes a lot of effort to make something from scratch. How often are you willing to do it? Maybe a few times per month. If you don't like to bake, maybe you pick up your favorite dessert from an amazing bakery that often. We should not deprive ourselves, rather have a healthy relationship with our favorite foods and put them in the right place. Really, it all comes down to Normal Eating {remember this post?}

So, this recipe is slightly hypocritical of me. But, my son really wanted to bake something tonight. These are by no means a health food, but you can feel pretty good about yourself for eating one. Like I said there is limited space for "healthy" desserts, this is one that fits in.

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter and Banana Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with 12 papers.

2 mashed bananas

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 TBSP Earth Balance

2 TBSP natural peanut butter

1 egg

1 TBSP vanilla

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup skim milk

Combine first 6 ingredients into a bowl and mix on high until well combined. Add in baking powder and soda. Alternate adding flour and milk. Mix until just combined. Evenly pour the batter into the 12 lined cupcake tins. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Do not over brown.

I tried making a semi-healthy frosting of whipped cream cheese, agave, and unsweetened cocoa powder. But, my three year old tasted it and said, "It's not my best." Honestly, those were his exact words. So, I added in some powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

Baking Season

It's officially baking season. I should probably have more "healthy" posts in between Treat Day, but I just couldn't help myself. I bet you can't either...

Martha Stewart's Pumpkin Swirl Brownies

Treat Day

I believe in the 90-10 rule. Maybe the 80-20. Throughout pregnancy (and beyond) I probably follow more like 66-34 rule. I need to get back to the 85-15 range.

Do you know what I am talking about?

I am a big advocate of Normal Eating (remember). The 90-10 rule goes along with Normal Eating and means that 90% of the foods you eat are healthy (fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean protein, low-fat dairy) and 10% are indulgences (chips, soda, cake, cookies, Lucky Charms). Sometimes I get caught-up in my desire to be a Normal Eater that perhaps I go a little overboard (like NOT leaving some cookies on the plate because I know I can have them again tomorrow)...

Additionally, I love to bake and my boy loves to help me. Sometimes, while my baby naps its one of our favorite one-on-one activities.

My point of all this is, I am going to designate Tuesday as Treat Day. Treat Day means that I will bake a delicious dessert (because that is my weakness) made from (scratch) good quality ingredients (not crisco, processed cookies, etc). Treat day doesn't mean doughnuts from the grocery store or pie, because those for me aren't worth it. I am good at saying no to things that just aren't worth it. Maybe some of the indulgences that I post on Treat Day wont be worth it to you. That's ok. I'll try to share a little something for everyone.

PS- I rarely keep the excess treats in my house. I'll give them away, which makes the day of the recipient.

Here's what we baked today (and shared with the neighbors)

Chocolate Caramel Tart (I renamed it because I revamped it from Giada's Esspresso Caramel Bars)

Ingredients:

Crust

6 ounces gingersnaps (free of PHO)

10 TBS Earth Balance (because there is real butter in the caramel)

1/4 cup brown sugar

Caramel Filling

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup 1% milk (you could use cream)

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

Chocolate Topping

1/2 bag milk chocolate chips

1/2 bag dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy cream

A few pinches sea salt (optional, but not really)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cookies, (pretend) butter, and brown sugar in a food processor. Pulse until fine. Spray a 12 inch spring form pan with cooking spray. Pour mixture in, pat down and bake for 12 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes.

2. Combine ingredients for the caramel. Melt in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Pour immediately over the crust. Let cool for 20 minutes. Freeze for 10 minutes.

3. Combine chocolate chips and heavy cream to melt over a double boiler. Pour over caramel. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

4. If desired, sprinkle lightly with sea salt just before service. I promise it makes the flavors POP!!

We need 50 followers before we do another give-a-way!

Capital D-Lish

Frozen Yogurt. I can't get enough in the Summer. Some versions are more healthy than others. Some versions are more expensive than others. I am a HUGE Red Mango fan, but it can be a little pricey. I found this recipe at eatingwell.com

Instead of sugar I used Organic Blue Agave* because its the cool thing to use. Plus, I thought the sugar might make the frozen yogurt more grainy. It was tart n' tangy. We loved it! Try it out!!

*Agave Nectar is a natural sweetener that is 25 times sweeter than sugar. So, typically you use less. Some research shows that it is low glycemic, meaning that it is slowly absorbed and doesn't spike insulin levels like regular sugar. It still contains 15 calories just like sugar so don't think you can eat all you want.

It's a great substitute for simple syrups to sweeten beverages like homemade lemonade or on waffles for breakfast. You could even add it to plain yogurt.

I {heart} antioxidants

Tis that time of year to eat some chocolate. As long as you use some restraint and give most of this away, this could be a perfect Valentine's Day treat. I am going to use dark chocolate instead of milk to get in some precious antioxidants. It also looks like a great activity for the kids.

Peanut Butter & Pretzel Truffles (www.eatingwell.com)

• 1/2 cup crunchy natural peanut butter
• 1/4 cup finely chopped salted pretzels
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
• Combine peanut butter and pretzels in a small bowl. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 15 minutes. Roll the peanut butter mixture into 20 balls (about 1 teaspoon each). Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper and freeze until very firm, about 1 hour. Roll the frozen balls in melted chocolate. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

Let the bAkInG fEsTiViTiEs BEGIN!!

Whole Wheat Orange Chocolate Cranberry Muffins
Makes 2 1/2 Dozen
Total time 40-45 minutes


Ingredients:
1 orange
1 cup sugar (preferably Sugar in the Raw)
2 cups low-fat or skim milk (preferably organic)
2/3 cup canola oil
2 large eggs (preferably free-range, organic)
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups All purpose flour (unbleached, preferably organic)
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 oz unsweetened, dried cranberries
6 oz high quality milk or dark chocolate chips


Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare muffin tins.
Wash orange. Zest the whole orange into a large mixing bowl. Squeeze orange juice, set aside.
Add sugar to zest and mix until combined. Add in milk, orange juice, eggs, and oil.
In a separate mixing bowl. Mix both flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until combined.
Stir in cranberries and chocolate by hand.
Add 1/4 cup of the mixture to each muffin cup.
Optional: Sprinkle lightly with sugar to give a crystallized finish to the top.
Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Let cool.


*This was an original recipe.