Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 cups diced yellow onion
1 large clove garlic, diced
1 cup diced carrot
1 small zucchini, diced
1 1/2 cups canned or frozen sweet corn
1 15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz. can tomato sauce
salt & pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
6 cups fat free chicken broth
3 chicken breasts
2 large handfuls of tortilla chips
3/4 cup hot buffalo sauce
1 small jalapeño pepper
1/4 cup cilantro

Directions:

Place large pot over medium heat. 

Sauté onion, garlic, carrot, zucchini, jalapeño pepper, and corn in olive oil to soften slightly, 5 minutes. Stir in beans, tomato sauce, hot sauce, spices, chicken broth and bring to boil. 

Reduce to simmer and place whole chicken breasts into soup. 

Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until chicken is cooked completely. 

Remove from pot, shred with fork and return to soup. 

Stir in cilantro and cook another 10 minutes. 

Ladle into bowls and top with tortilla chips

Pumpkin Banana Oat Balls

Pumpkin Banana Oat Balls

Ingredients:

1 chia ‘egg’ (1 teaspoon ground chia seeds + 2 tablespoons water)
1 cup regular oats
1 cup whole grain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tbsp dark chocolate chips
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup maple syrup
1 small banana, chopped
3/4 cup canned pumpkin

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375F. Mix chia egg in a small bowl and set aside. Mix dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl and set aside. Mix wet ingredients in a small to medium sized bowl and then add chia egg. Stir. Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients. Use hand mixer to blend and shape balls onto a pan. Makes 24 small balls. Cook for 13 minutes at 375F.

Peanut Butter Banana Bread Muffins

Peanut Butter Banana Bread Muffins

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (~1 medium) very ripe banana
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons brown sugar, lightly packed
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup old fashioned oats (blended to become oat flour)
1/3 cup whole wheat flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray the muffin pan with nonstick spray and fill the unused cavities halfway up with water (ensures even baking).
Do not use muffin liners.
Remove the banana peel and mash well using a fork.
In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, cream together the mashed up banana, peanut butter (do not warm up), honey, vanilla extract, and brown sugar.
Beat until completely combined. Beat in the egg.
Beat in the salt, baking soda, baking powder, and whole wheat flour.
To make the oat flour, take oats and pulse them in a blender or food processor until they are in a flour-like consistency. Make sure to measure the oat flour AFTER blending and not before or the amounts will be off. Add oat flour.
Beat just until combined.
Using a cookie scoop, scoop two full scoops or desired amount into muffin cavities.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.
Makes 7-8 muffins.

Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad

Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is one of my favorite summer recipes, but it is usually packed with a ton of fat and calories. This is my light version with a Greek twist served over top of spinach.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. plain greek yogurt

1/2 c. light mayo

1/2 c. reduced fat feta cheese

3 chicken breasts, cooked and diced

1 c. tomatoes, diced

1/2 c. cucumbers, diced

1/4 c. black olives, sliced in half

1 c. green & red peppers, mixed, diced

1/2 spinach (for each serving)

Directions:

Pre cook chicken breasts until reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Mix Greek yogurt and mayo together in small bowl until well blended. Dice all vegetables and mix together in a separate bowl. Pour greek yogurt and mayo mixture over top of vegetables. Stir in chicken and feta cheese until everything is well coated. Serve over top of spinach leaves and enjoy!

Overnight Chocolate Oats

Overnight Chocolate Oats

Ingredients:

1/2 c. oats dry

6 oz. unsweetened vanilla almond milk (can add more or less depending on thickness desired)

1/2 c. blueberries

1 scoop Chocolate Daily Whey Protein

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. splenda (or sweetener of choice)

*In morning can top with 1 tbsp. of nut butter and a sprinkle of granola or your favorite whole grain cereal for a crunch!

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a mason jar and let sit in refrigerator overnight. Top with a tbsp. of your favorite nut butter in the morning and a sprinkle of your favorite cereal, mix and enjoy!

Homemade Dill Refridgerator Pickles

Dill Refrigerator Pickles

 I LOVE PICKLES!!! A friend of mine recently made pickles so I asked for him to send me the recipe. With a few simple alterations I made it my own! This recipe makes 3 jars of pickles.

These pickles are meant to be eaten in a short time period-- AKA Refrigerator Pickles!

Ingredients:
3 c. water
3 c. apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp. pickling salt

3 large cucumbers, washed and cut into slices (short ways)
1 vidalia onion
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes per jar
1 tbsp. dill weed per jar
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns per jar
6 garlic cloves, peeled, 2 per jar
1 tsp. coriander seeds per jar
1 tsp. mustard seeds per jar

*To add spiciness to your pickles, add a few sliced jalapeno peppers to each jar**

Directions:
-Combine vinegar, water, and pickling salt in a saucepan. Cook until simmering but not boiling.

-Divide the spices into the jars, then pack the cucumbers into each jar. Add large pieces of vidalia onion in with cucumbers.

-Pour the simmering vinegar combination over the cucumbers and onion into the jar. Leave 1/2 inch of air left at the top of the jar but make sure all of the contents are covered.

-Tap the bottoms of the jar to remove any air bubbles, then screw the lid on. Let cool to room temperature then place in refrigerator.

-Let the pickles sit in the refrigerator for 48 hours to 72 hours.

*Taste great as a sandwich topping or by themselves*

ENJOY :)

Peanut Butter Protein Blondies

Peanut Butter Protein Blondies

I was in the mood for something sweet for dessert so I chose to take an exisiting recipe and modify it with the ingredients I had. These are supposed to mimic your typical blondies, a decadent dessert. Most of the ingredients I had on hand because it's just that simple, but I did make a few modifications.

Ingredients:

1 can drained and rinsed chickpeas

4 Egg whites

3 tbsp. Splenda (or sweetner of choice)

1 scoop Vanilla Daily Whey Protein Powder

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

2 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/4 c. Natural Peanut Butter (Smucker's)

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

1/4 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 c. Oats

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 baking pan. Place the drained and rinsed chickpeas into the food processsor until completely mashed. Next, add the egg whites, splenda, protein powder, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and vanilla extract to the food processor. Lastly, add the peanut butter and let mix until completely blended.

After everything is well blended, move mixture into a bowl. Fold in the oats.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes