Berry and Cream Crepes

Today I felt like being creative in the kitchen, but it was HOT in Cleveland - 93 degrees last time I checked. With an abundance of frozen fruit in my freezer (usually destined for smoothies), I decided crepes would involve the least amount of time standing over a stove.


I encountered a few problems immediately - I only had two eggs left, I was out of milk, and getting more of either involved going out into that ungodly heat. After some research and substitutions, I came up with the recipe below, which worked surprisingly well. I will not post my disastrous attempt at strawberry filling; instead, I merely suggest you use fresh strawberries to fill this crepe and top with either whipped cream or the mascarpone topping listed below.

Crepe soup, anyone?

Ingredients:


2 eggs
6 T all-purpose flour
2 t sugar
1/4 t cinnamon
1/4 t salt
2/3 cup milk (I substituted vanilla almond milk)
2 t coconut oil


Mix the above ingredients together in a blender; blend until smooth.


Topping:


1 12-oz container mascarpone cheese
1 1/2 T honey


Mix mascarpone and honey together in a bowl until smooth.


Heat a medium-sized nonstick frying pan on a little higher than medium heat. The heat level will vary by stove, so use your judgement. Be patient and let your pan get hot before you start.


Most recipes say to use a small amount of butter to grease the pan, but I found this made my crepe too flimsy, greasy, and very difficult to flip. On my second crepe, I used a dry pan, and it worked far better.


Pour enough batter into the pan to almost fill the pan with a very thin layer. Working quickly, use a tablespoon to spread batter throughout the pan and to thin out thick spots.

When crepe is almost cooked through, work a large spatula carefully under the edges and flip quickly. This may take a few tries to get the technique down; don't be discouraged if your first one falls apart or end up hanging halfway out of the pan (yep, I did that).

Yeah! A successful flip!

Spoon some berries into a line in the center and use the spatula to fold over the sides so that it looks like a burrito. Some people prefer to just fold in half, but I found it is easier to get the crepe out of the pan if it is folded in thirds. Don't overfill the crepe, or this will happen when you try to fold it:

I still can't believe I actually got this out of the pan without making a mess

My advice on successfully removing a crepe from the frying pan is this: pick up the frying pan and hold it over a plate. Tilt the frying pan and use the spatula to guide the crepe onto the plate. This works far better than trying to lift the whole crepe with a spatula and move it to the plate without falling apart.

The only one that made it to the plate intact

Top with a few dollops of the mascarpone topping. I tried putting the mascarpone on the inside, but it melted quickly, creating the soupy mess that you see above. Makes 2-4 crepes, depending on how large you make them and how many you accidentally destroy.

References:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Banana-Orange-Crepes-109044

Cajun Chicken Alfredo

Alfredo sauce is another weakness of mine. Absolutely delicious and chock full of calories, it's something in which I rarely allow myself to indulge. Heavy cream is what makes this food so amazing and yet so bad for you, so I set out to find a recipe that still tastes great but doesn't cause me to gain five pounds overnight. This recipe uses 2% milk instead of cream. It's still not quite healthy, but it tastes like the real thing with a little less guilt.


This recipe is very versatile. I had a craving for Cajun tonight, but if you replace the Cajun spices with salt, pepper, and garlic powder you will have a more traditional alfredo sauce. I also love using shrimp instead of chicken, but unfortunately that is a much more expensive recipe.

It's not very pretty, but it tastes incredible!

Makes 3-4 servings.


Ingredients:


8 oz. fettuccine pasta
Cajun spice mix
3 chicken breasts
2 T butter
2 T coconut oil
1 t minced garlic
3 T flour
2 cups 2% milk
1 cup grated Romano cheese


Required equipment:


Wire whisk
Large cast-iron or stainless steel frying pan - do not use a Teflon or other coated pan for this recipe or you may end up with bits of the non-stick coating in your food from the wire whisk scraping the pan.


Cook pasta according to directions, drain, and set aside.


In a shallow bowl, coat chicken breasts with Cajun spice mix until they are completely covered. Yes, I use a mix - it's so easy, and I am new at cooking Cajun food and have no clue what makes it taste so amazing.

This is the spice mix I use, found at my local grocery store.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon coconut oil in frying pan on medium heat. If you don't own coconut oil, just replace it with the same amount of butter. Add minced garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Add meat to pan, turning every few minutes until chicken breasts are cooked all the way through. When you flip the meat, scrape the bottom of the pan with a spatula so spices and drippings do not stick and burn.

When chicken is cooked all the way through, remove meat to a clean plate, quickly slice into smaller pieces, and return to pan. Mix these smaller chicken pieces with the juices and spices in the pan until coated and cook for a few more minutes. Remove chicken back to plate and cover to keep warm.

Reduce heat to low-medium. Melt 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon coconut oil in pan, mixing with the spices and juices that are left in the pan after cooking the chicken. Add flour in small amounts, stirring constantly with wire whisk until all flour is mixed in. Add milk slowly, still stirring constantly with wire whisk to prevent lumps. You may have to stir fairly vigorously to get rid of the lumps.


When all lumps are gone, continue to stir frequently until mixture is hot but not boiling (a few minutes). When hot, add grated cheese slowly, stirring with whisk until cheese is melted and mixed in. Once all cheese has been added and melted, add at least another tablespoon of Cajun spice mix and stir. Taste the sauce and add more Cajun spices to your liking.


Remove from heat and mix sauce with pasta and chicken. You may need to do this in another container if your frying pan is not big enough.

Ready to eat!

References:
http://www.food.com/recipe/reduced-fat-alfredo-sauce-12365

Peanut Butter Dip

I have a serious addiction to peanut butter. Of course, it couldn't be the healthy peanut butter; no, I love that processed, sugary, creamy goodness of Skippy or Jif peanut butter.

In the past, I have been known to take a spoon to the peanut butter and demolish half a jar in one sitting. With the high fat content in peanut butter, this was a horrible habit that needed to stop. I know it's the "good fat," but when you eat as much as I like to, it negates the goodness.

This recipe has allowed me to reintroduce peanut butter into my diet in a healthier way. Eaten with apples, I have found it to be a quick and easy snack for those days when I get home from work late at night and need a fast meal before bed. 

Ingredients:

3 T fat-free plain Greek yogurt

3 T peanut butter

1 t cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl until uniform. This makes enough dip to eat one sliced apple. For larger amounts, just keep the yogurt-to-peanut butter ratio at 50/50 and add cinnamon to taste. The addition of fat-free Greek yogurt adds protein and volume, tricking your brain into thinking you are pigging out on peanut butter when you're actually eating something somewhat healthy.

Pretty!

The original recipe called for more yogurt and added honey as a sweetener, but I found the peanut butter flavor that I love so much was lost in that version. See the link below if you are interested in the sweeter version.

References:

http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/food/galleries/photo/-/8858091/low-calorie-treats-for-the-sweet-tooth/8858093/

Spicy Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches

This was a very simple dinner I threw together on a day when I wasn't feeling well due to a sinus headache, but was in the mood to eat great things. As an added bonus, spicy food tends to clear out my sinuses. This sandwich definitely did the trick, and James, who loves spicy food more than anyone I've ever known, said "don't change a thing" about this recipe.

Ingredients:


1 cup barbeque sauce
¼ cup Frank’s Red Hot sauce
¼ cup water
1 lb. frozen chicken breasts or chicken tenders
1 package ranch dressing mix, or 2T homemade ranch mix (see below)
1T butter


Homemade ranch dressing spice mix:
Mix the following ingredients together and store in an airtight container.


5 T dried minced onions
7 teaspoons parsley flakes
4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder


Combine barbeque sauce, hot sauce, water and spices in a bowl and mix well. If you have picky eaters who aren't big on spicy food, you can omit the hot sauce from this step and just let each person add it to his or her own sandwich. Add this mixture and frozen chicken to a slow cooker. If you are having trouble getting the frozen chicken out of the container, run cold water over it until it is easy to separate from the packaging. Don’t forget to wash your hands after handling the raw chicken. Drop the tablespoon of butter on top; don't worry if it is frozen or cold.


Cover and cook on low heat for six hours. Remove lid and use two forks to shred chicken without removing it from the slow cooker. Replace lid and cook on low for one more hour. Serve on toasted buns for best results. Crunchy kettle chips went great with this spicy, soggy sandwich.

References:
http://www.food.com/recipe/crockpot-buffalo-chicken-sandwiches-470965
http://selfreliancebyjamie.blogspot.com/2011/08/tis-seasonings.html

Avocado Hummus

I hit up a ridiculous sale on avocados earlier this week and have been enjoying the surplus. This recipe combines two of my favorite foods - avocados and hummus.

Ingredients:


1 15-oz can of garbanzo beans/chickpeas
1-2 ripe avocados, chopped
1 jalapeño
3T dried cilantro
2 garlic cloves (or 1t minced garlic)
3T olive oil
2T lemon juice


Drain and rinse chickpeas. Add chickpeas, avocados, cilantro, garlic and jalapeño to food processor. To easily “chop” the avocado, I score half an avocado with a knife before removing it from the skin with a large spoon. I used two avocados today because they were really small, but one medium-sized avocado would be fine. I also didn’t have a whole  jalapeño laying around the house, so I added about 6 pieces from a jar of sliced  jalapeños. Add a few more if you really like spicy food.

Chop these ingredients in the food processor until somewhat smooth. Add olive oil and lemon juice one tablespoon at a time, pureeing in between. Continue to puree until smooth. If your hummus is still too thick for your liking, add water one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency.

How I eat it: My favorite way to eat ANY hummus is with a fresh piece of Aladdin’s Nan (flatbread) torn up into little pieces for dipping. My second favorite way to eat hummus, which I did today, is to spread a thick layer on the same flatbread and fill it with ingredients for a sandwich. Today I added ham and baby spinach for what turned out to be a really tasty wrap.

Store any leftover hummus in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Remember that homemade hummus doesn’t have any preservatives, so eat it soon before the avocado starts to change scary colors.


References:
http://www.ahealthyjalapeno.com/2012/03/hot-guacamole-hummus.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AHealthyJalapeno+%28a+Healthy+Jalapeno%29 

Ultimate Protein Smoothie

In order to share this recipe, I must admit that we're a little obsessed with protein in this house. James is always trying to eat it to put some weight on his thin frame, and I eat a large percentage of protein to fill me up so I don't pig out on things like chocolate chip cookies (drool) and gain all my weight back.


As usual, after my run today I threw random things in the blender for a quick post-workout meal. The thing that made today different than any other day is that this was the BEST smoothie I've ever made, both health-wise and taste-wise (I'm not counting some of the impressive alcoholic concoctions I've made). It was so good, I decided it had to be added to the blog, both so I can recreate it and so you can share in the healthy yumminess.


Note: My frozen fruit was leftover after I made a fruit salad for Easter. I froze it while still fairly fresh because I had way more than I could possibly eat before it would start rotting. I found this far more cost-effective than buying bags of fruit in the freezer section at the grocery store.


Ingredients:
1 cup frozen cantaloupe
10-15 frozen green grapes (a handful)
1 cup fresh baby spinach (you won't taste it, I promise)
1 cup orange juice
1-2 scoops protein powder*
1 T ground flax seeds


Throw all ingredients in the blender and blend until the desired consistency. Enjoy immediately. The end result is about 3 cups of smoothie, almost 30 grams of protein, less than 400 calories, and a heck of a lot of vitamins. All that, and it tastes like dessert.


*I used Isopure Zero Carb Mango Peach protein mix. This and the chocolate version are staples in our cupboard. They taste great, include lots of vitamins, and dissolve better than any protein powder I've found. You don't get that powdery, gritty feeling in your mouth like most protein powders. And they don't use aspartame, which is is HUGE plus for me since it does horrible things to my body.

Somewhat-Healthier Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cake

It's been a few weeks since my last post - I've still been cooking and baking, I just haven't had time to post the recipes. I had an awful migraine this week, which often means I get to eat whatever I want in an attempt to kill the headache. That resulted in this masterpiece dessert that I found on Pinterest and just had to eat immediately. I adjusted the recipe a little, making it healthier by eliminating the chocolate frosting and using fat-free Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

*Drool*

Ingredients:


1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ t baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ t salt
½ stick (4 T) unsalted butter (salted is OK if that’s all you have)
3 oz. creamy peanut butter (a little less than ½ cup)
½ cup tightly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
¼ cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt
¼ cup hot water
½ t vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 325 degrees.


Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. I like to stir flour mixtures with a wire whisk or a fork to avoid the bad taste of chunks of baking soda in your baked goods.


In a separate bowl, cream butter, peanut butter, and brown sugar. Fun tip - if you are out of brown sugar (or if it’s solidified beyond saving like mine was), mix ½ cup white sugar plus 1 ½ tablespoons molasses in a food processor for an easy substitute.

Homemade brown sugar

Add egg and egg yolk and mix for a minute or two. Add half of flour mixture and mix until combined, scraping sides as you mix. Add yogurt and mix at medium-high speed for two minutes. Add the rest of the flour mixture and mix until combined. Continue to scrape sides eventually to include all ingredients. Add hot water and vanilla extract, beating on medium-high for 2-3 minutes.


Abandon the mixer at this point, and mix in the chocolate chips using a large spoon or spatula. The original recipe only called for a ½ cup of chocolate chips, but who doesn’t want more chocolate? I used miniature chocolate chips because I had some left over from my last batch of biscotti.

Grease a 9x9 pan. I used coconut oil to grease the pan for a little extra flavor. Spread batter into pan using a spatula. Bake for at least 30 minutes, until center appears baked through. A knife inserted in the center won't help you know if it's done because the melted chocolate chips stick to the knife no matter what. Let cool for a few minutes in pan. Cut into 9 pieces and serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on top.

*Note: After making this recipe once, I recommend baking it in a 13x9 pan for a shorter time - maybe 20-25 minutes. In a 9x9 pan, the center was too thick and not completely baked while the edges were starting to burn.

Yum!

References:
http://www.culinaryconcoctionsbypeabody.com/2006/10/01/life-can-be-cruel/