Brownie Muffins

Here is your swapportunity to take advantage of my new recipe with only 3 ingredients!

I can’t believe it has been a month since my last post, I guess summer gets the best of us and before we know it…the dreaded BACK TO SCHOOL! Yay for me, boo for them 😀

Ok, back to my recipe, you are not going to want to ignore this one! I found this from Hungry Girl and I am always looking for new ways to swap high fats for good fats and so on. I recently tried those black bean brownies you see everywhere…ya that is SO not for me (or anyone else in the house!) THESE my friends….you are going to LOVE. You know that saying you won’t miss a thing when you are subbing an ingredient for another? Well it is so true here! I promise, you will never make these the “regular” way again! The best part is the calorie count for one of these is 143 calories and 3 grams of fat! You can’t beat that for a moist, fluffy, chocolaty brownie treat! 

Count down with me…3, 2, 1…here we go!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Box Duncan Hines Devils Food Cake Mix
• 1 Can Libby’s Pumpkin Puree (15 oz can)
• 1 tbsp. Nestles Chocolate Chips, divided

DIRECTIONS -Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

1. Mix together cake mix and pumpkin puree until well combined.
2. Add about 2 tbsp. mix into muffin liners and top with a few mini chocolate chips.
3. Bake for 20 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and let cool before devouring + enjoy!
5. Press the STAPLES easy button 😀

 

If you liked this recipe, you will love these:

• Dark Chocolate Coconut Banana Cake Bites
• Chocolate Chip Nutella Banana Bread
• Ultimate S’mores Bread

 

Organic Raw Stuffed Sweet Peppers

WHEW DOGGIE! It is hot here in California, between June and July we get into the 100+ degree temperatures and I can’t fathom myself to make hot food for any one of my 3 daily meals. That is how this gem of a dish was born. I always have left over avocado, sweet peppers and cilantro lying around. (Remember I love Mexican food!) So I was dreaming of a cool summer dinner with little fuss and easy to make, to keep the summer fun going from the day. I am always down to stuff a pepper (that sounds so wrong, but so good at the same time!), and there are endless possibilities with these. My next version will include grated onion and crispy bacon! 

I decided to head to the Farmer’s Market this week and found some gorgeous fresh and organic vegetables, which included the pea shoots you see in this recipe as a garnish. If you haven’t tried these, please do yourself a favor and do so. I first had them from a restaurant that served them with fried calamari. It was all I could do to eat the calamari because these pea shoots were too delicious. Anyway, they are a must try if you can find them. They go great on top salad, in sandwiches, on top or raw food such as this or any other way you can think of!

My kids love meat (as do I), but recently I have been making meatless meals for myself and finding I still get filled up. I will never give up meat, it just isn’t in my bones, but every now and then not having to “worry” about what meat to use is a nice thing.

I had only 1 kid willing to try this meal, she said she liked them, but did she have another? NO! It’s ok though, sometimes food such as this are an acquired taste. Regardless, I was happy and cool while eating them with a nice refreshing vodka spritzer and my feet up listening to my spotify tunes! If you are ready to enjoy a quick, easy and healthy meal, read on:

INGREDIENTS

2 avocado, mashed
2.5 Tbsp pesto
1 clove garlic, minced
juice of 1/2 a lime + zest + reserve some slices to drizzle over top
handful of organic cilantro, washed & stems removed
handful of organic pea shoots, washed
salt/pepper to taste
10-12 organic sweet peppers (depends on their size how many you will need), washed, de-stemmed and deseeded

DIRECTIONS

1. Pulse all ingredients in food processor until smooth.
2. Pour contents into a ziplock baggie
3. Snip off tip and fill peppers (use the reserved lime to drizzle over tops before eating)

If you loved this recipe, check out more from Sweet Heat Chefs below;

• Mexican Red Quinoa Stuffed Sweet Peppers
• Stuffed Poblano Peppers
• Cornbread Gone Wild

Strawberry Swirled Lemon Bars

I was feeling in a rut with the foods I had been eating since I have been eating primarily so much healthy stuff. This particular afternoon I was getting ready to head to a Relay meeting, and I felt that thing..you know…that baking itch? I decided to make lemon bars since they are fairly easy and quick to make. However, since strawberries are in season I always have 1-2 quarts of them in my fridge on hand. I got to thinking of strawberry lemonade, then figured why not in my lemon bars? I took a quick Facebook poll (sad I know!) to determine if I should or not, the response was just as I had hoped…STRAWBERRIES! And so…this recipe was born and summer has officially begun in my house here in California!

I am loving nothing more and feeling so honored to be able to share this recipe for the first time with My Imperfect Kitchen readers! Sara is an amazing blogger, friend and person. I hope everyone loves this recipe as much as my Relay committee members and family did. I even snuck 3 of them into my belly!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup coconut flour, sifted
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted
4 eggs, beaten
1.5 cups white sugar
1/4 cup coconut flour
½ tsp baking soda
2 lemons, juiced and seeded (zest 1 lemon first and reserve)
4 strawberries pureed with a little coconut water to thin out
Powdered sugar for dusting top (optional)

DIRECTIONS – Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

1. In a bowl, combine butter, flours and 1/2 c of sugar. Mix well.
2. In a greased 9×13″ pan, press crust into the bottom until even.
3. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and set aside.
4. In another bowl whisk together the remaining sugar and flour, then whisk in the remaining ingredients, except strawberries (don’t forget the lemon zest).
5. Pour the filling over the warm crust.
6. In a blender or food processor puree the strawberries. Dollop 1 teaspoon at a time over the filling until it is all used up. Using a toothpick or wooden skewer, drag the strawberry mixture through the lemon mixture. Be sure not to press all the way to the crust.
7. Put back in oven and bake for another 25 minutes or until center is firm. They do firm more when cooled. Dust with powdered sugar (optional) Cut into squares once completely cool and enjoy!

If you like this recipe, check out more from Sweet Heat Chefs:

• Coconut Strawberry Cake Cocktail
• Dark Chocolate Coconut Banana Bites
• Strawberry Banana Yogurt Popsicles
• Green Smoothie

Strawberry Banana Yogurt Popsicles

This past weekend was a hot one! I found myself browsing recipes to try to find something that I could make to beat the heat. As usual I find many a recipe over at The Slow Roasted Italian. This was no exception, as I found just the recipe I needed. You can see their recipe here. I changed nothing about it, that is how good it is!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds ripe strawberries, washed and hulled
• 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup non-fat plain yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Combine strawberries, 2 tablespoons sugar and lemon juice in a food processor and blend until smooth. 

Divide half of the strawberry mixture in your popsicle molds and set it aside.

In a small bowl combine bananas, yogurt, 1 tablespoon sugar and vanilla and stir to combine.

Add banana mixture on top of the strawberry mixture in the popsicles molds, filling them about 2/3 full.

Pour remaining strawberry mixture on top.  Freeze 4-24 hours until completely frozen.

Don’t have a Popsicle mold? Use an ice-cube tray, younger kids love to eat them this way too. Place a layer of plastic wrap over the top and insert toothpicks or popsicle sticks to keep in place while freezing. ENJOY your summer!

Carbless & Gluten Free Turkey Burger

I definitely enjoy my carbs, but sometimes when eating healthy limiting carbs are a great way to lose weight. I can’t in any way shape or form eliminate foods I love to eat entirely. As I have said before everything in moderation. This burger not only tastes good, but is low in fat, calories and no carbs. Very figure friendly and you can enjoy your meal without the guilt 😀

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 pound ground turkey meat
• 1/4 cup baby spinach, washed and diced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 tbs green onion, washed and diced
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp powdered ranch mix
• 1 egg white
• 1 oz pepper jack cheese
• salt/pepper to taste
• Coconut oil for cooking

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix all ingredients together except cheese.
2. Divide mixture into 4 equal parts and create a ball.
3. Add a piece of pepper jack inside and form meat mixture around it creating a burger patty. Continue with the rest of the mixture.
4. Pan fry with 1 tsp coconut oil until cooked through. I served mine with 1/2 slice of pepper jack cheese on top and 2 slices of avocado. 

Calories for 1 burger + avocado = 105 calories and 5.5 grams of fat!

I store the other burgers in the freezer in an airtight container until ready to cook!

Week 3 Healthy Eating

Week 3 brought out the BEAST in me 😀

I think this was one of the best feeling weeks yet. I can tell a difference in how some clothes fit, heck I even found a pair of capri jeans that fit and I don’t think I ever wore them to begin with! My shin splints are near gone and I can pick up the pace when I walk and I can alternate some running in. I feel great!

One of my staple foods this week was this Carb-less Turkey Burger! I am all for carbs, but when counting calories, you have to be careful where you use them. So for this burger I chose to eat it without, and it was just as good 😀 Hidden inside is a small piece of pepper jack cheese waiting to be let out!

Carb-less Turkey Burger

• 1/2 pound ground turkey meat
• 1/4 cup baby spinach, washed and diced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 tbs green onion, washed and diced
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp powdered ranch mix
• 1 egg white
• 1 oz pepper jack cheese
• salt/pepper to taste
• Coconut oil for cooking

Mix all ingredients together except cheese. Divide mixture into 4 equal parts and create a ball. Add a piece of pepper jack inside and form meat mixture around it creating a burger patty. Continue with the rest of the mixture. Pan fry with 1 tsp coconut oil until cooked through. I served mine with 1/2 slice of pepper jack cheese on top and 2 slices of avocado. Calories for 1 burger + avocado = 105 calories and 5.5 grams of fat! I store the other burgers in the freezer in an airtight container until ready to cook!

For lunches I found a quick and easy soup. I don’t like store canned soup, but I broke down and tried a few and liked them. My favorite was the Creamy Tomato Basil by Progresso. High in fiber and only 100 calories per 8 oz. I just heat it up and add 1/4 cup of Trader Joe’s Brown Rice Medley and I have a full meal that fills up my belly! This soup has been a staple lunch all week!

Motivating music for the week:

Kelly Clarkson: Stronger

My workout regimen has changed from walking & running 1.8 miles to 2.5 miles twice a day. Some days I struggle to get it done, I have a 2 year old that I have to bring a long and pushing his weight (30 pounds) plus the car stroller (10 pounds) is hard. I think of it as resistance training! hahaha When my other kids get home I have them watch him so I can do my second run alone and it is so much better. But we can’t always have things nice and tidy like that so I do what I have to, to get my time in.

This week I was nervous to get on the scale, yes I knew I had lost weight because those pants I tried on fit, but I just lost 4 pounds last week and was unsure if I could loose more again. To my surprise…I lost 4 more pounds!!!! OMG! I stared at the scale, got off, and re-weighed myself! Yep, sure enough, 4 pounds! WOO-HOO! That brings my total to MINUS 10 pounds from this bod! I am super stoked. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Missed a week? 

• Week 1 Healthy Eating
• Week 2 Healthy Eating

You might also like these healthy recipes from Sweet Heat Chefs:

Mocha Cappuccino Banana Bread Bites

Coconut Strawberry Cake Cocktail

Zucchini Lasagna

Coconut Strawberry Cake Cocktail!

I only have 1 thing to say…

Let’s enjoy summer together shall we?

 

INGREDIENTS

1 oz. Smirnoff Iced Cake Vodka
1 oz. Malibu Caribbean Rum with Coconut Liqueur
2 tsp. fresh squeezed lime juice + 2 slices of lime
2 fresh strawberries; washed, trimmed and muddled + 1 whole for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. In a glass muddle the strawberries.
2. Add lime juice and  1 thin slice of lime.
3. Add 2 ice cubes.
4. Add alcohol, stir and serve with strawberry and lime on rim of glass.

This makes 1 glass at 125 Calories!