Zucchini Bread/Muffins

 A few weeks ago my mother-in-law went to farmers market deal where you pay $10 and get 60 lbs of veggies. Yes, that's right. She shared a lot with us: tomatoes, green bell peppers, tomatillos, and lots of zucchini. We successfully used all our veggies, and tripled this recipe to use all the zucchini. Our freezer is well stocked with muffins!

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup applesauce
2 cups grated zucchini
3 tsp. vanilla
3 tsp. cinnamon
3 cups flour ( I used 1 cup whole wheat & 2 cups all-purpose)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
optional: 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour 2  9x5 or 2 muffin pans.

2. In a medium bowl, combine sugars, eggs, and applesauce. Beat well. Add vanilla and zucchini. In a separate bowl combine cinnamon, flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Add optional chopped nuts.

3. Pour into prepared pans and bake loaves for 1 hour or muffins for 18-23 minutes (mine were done right at 20 min).

BBQ Chicken Salad with Avocado Vinaigrette

Welp, here we are with a full week in the 100s...and no relief in sight. We're trying to enjoy grilling while we can, and salads are such a good way to keep the kitchen cool. Here is a pretty basic BBQ chicken salad with a twist from a tasty vinaigrette. The funny thing is, we were already planning on having red potatoes on the side and when I found the recipe for the vinaigrette they also had the same side dish. Guess it's a good combo? Not the best picture, but I am finding I am less and less patient once it comes to dinner time :)

BBQ Chicken Salad

 chicken breasts, grilled with favorite barbeque sauce (plus a bit more to add after cutting up)
greens of choice (romaine, spinach, mixed greens, etc)
black beans, drained & rinsed
fresh corn (or frozen corn, thawed)
red onion, to taste
cucumber, diced
tomatoes, diced
cheese of choice
fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Avocado Vinaigrette

1/3 cup olive oil
1/6 cup white wine vinegar
2 scallions
1 Tbsp. peach jam
1/2 medium ripe avocado
Salt and pepper to taste
 *makes enough dressing for 4 servings

To make salad, layer greens with remaining ingredients. Add a bit of dressing and toss. Garnish with cilantro.

dressing adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod

White Bean Tomatillo Tacos

This dish was inspired from a need to use a lot of tomatillos and tomatoes.  The Hatch family loves bean burros from a restaurant in Phoenix called Don Jose. There are many Hatch traditions I've come to love... unfortunately Don Jose's isn't exactly my favorite tradition. (I was relieved to find out one of my brothers-in-law isn't a huge fan either!) I do appreciate that it is a family-run place, but not quite my first choice for eating out. When going to Don Jose's most family members order a 'bean burro'- refried beans with cheese in a tortilla. I won't claim this recipe to be close to the beloved Don Jose bean burro, but it got a stamp of approval from Nick and is I'm sure significantly healthier.

Tomatillo Salsa

Ingredients

1 jalapeno

1 1/2 bunches of cilantro, no stems

12-15 fresh tomatillos, about 1 1/2 to 2 inch size, husked and cleaned

juice of 1 lime plus zest

1-2 tsp. of sugar, or other sweetener
1-2 cloves garlic
1/4 of large onion

salt to taste

Directions

Boil the jalapeno in water. Cut off stem and add to blender with all other ingredients (I split it in half first and removed the seeds because I'm wimpy.)  Blend until almost smooth. Chill. 

Tacos

Ingredients

2 cans of white beans, drained and rinsed
cumin, to taste
oregano, to taste
coriander, to taste
tortillas
shredded cheese
cucumbers, diced
tomatoes, diced
fresh spinach, roughly chopped
tomatillo salsa

1. In a medium saucepan, add rinsed beans with a bit of water- about 1/4 of the saucepan. Turn heat to medium-high and add cumin, oregano, coriander.  Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally til beans have thickened and have a texture almost like refried beans.


2. Cook or warm tortillas. Add beans, sprinkle with cheese and allow to melt. Garnish with cucumbers, tomatoes, and spinach. Add tomatillo salsa and enjoy!

adapted from the Enlightened Homemaker

Poppy Seed Chicken Pitas, Now and Then

I made this to take for our picnic lunch at our ward activity a few weeks ago. I made this the night before and just kept finding things to add to enhance it. I think the original recipe is tasty (bottom picture), but this version offers a bit more in terms of veggies helping bulk it up without all of the bulk being meat. Nick and I were both going for the leftovers, the pregnant lady won. Thanks, Nicky Poo.

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts
drizzle of olive oil
1 lemon
1/2 tsp. thyme (just add it on as you like!)
kosher salt and fresh black pepper
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt-- I used an entire 5.8 oz container
1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1-2 stalk celery, chopped
1-2 red bell peppers, diced
1/4 cup onion, minced (red or white)- to taste
1/2 cup chopped pecans, almonds or walnuts, toasted (I used sliced almonds)
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives (can use tops of green onions)
2-3 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
1 1/2 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped (optional) OR dried cranberries
torn lettuce or spinach leaves, for serving
whole-wheat Pitas, halved

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Give the chicken a very light drizzle of olive oil. Squeeze half of the lemon over tops of chicken breasts in a baking pan. (To get the most lemon juice, leave at room temperature, heat for a few seconds in microwave and roll around before squeezing.) Season with salt, pepper and thyme. Cover with foil and bake until cooked through and juices run clear (170 degrees). Remove from oven and let cool.

2. In a large mixing bowl whisk together the mayo, yogurt, juice of the other half of lemon, mustard, celery, bell pepper, onion, chives, parsley, poppy seeds, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Add the apricots/cranberries and nuts if desired or save the nuts for sprinkling over top.

3. Shred the chicken, discarding the bones and skin, and toss with the dressing. Stuff a few lettuce leaves and some of the chicken salad into each pita. Sprinkle with nuts.

Makes 6-8 pitas

adapted from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice

Creamy Spinach & Avocado Pasta

 I can't tell if it's just my pregnant state that makes my love affair with meals even better, or if I'm just on a lucky streak with new recipes lately. Usually there are a few duds between every successful recipe, but I've genuinely loved the past few recipes we've tried. I'd been wanting to try this recipe from Giada (which is essentially the same thing swapping arugula for spinach) but, saw this recipe recently and decided to try it first since we always have an abundance of spinach in our fridge. Truthfully, I was a little nervous because I do not especially like the taste of cooked spinach. I try to sneak in it meals here and there, but I very much prefer it raw. I told Nick that this would either be awesome or disgusting, luckily it was the former. Nick said his only complaint was, "That {I} didn't put more on {his} plate." Siena devoured hers and wanted seconds, even when I told her it was a spinach and avocado sauce. Since we each ate a hefty serving of spinach and I was too lazy, this pasta plus fresh pineapple was dinner. Needless to say, we did not have any left overs. We used basil from our garden and since we have spinach starting to grow as well, hopefully in a few more weeks we can try it again with our own bounty. {P.S. We just got lots of organic whole wheat spaghetti from Costco- it ends up being about $1.00/lb which is a pretty great price since normal Barilla is $1.00-$1.40 around here-the whole wheat varieties significantly more.} I've been waiting to go to the store and get another small Greek yogurt so we can enjoy this again! (It just so happens that the amount of yogurt I used in the Chicken burgers + this recipe = exactly one yogurt cup.)

Creamy Spinach & Avocado Pasta

Ingredients

6-8 ounces of pasta
2 Tbsp. butter (next time I'll try 1 Tbsp.)
1 clove garlic, minced
pinch of salt, more to taste
3-4 big handfuls of spinach (about 8-10 oz)
fresh basil, roughly chopped
1/4 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut into large chunks
1/2 cup grated fresh Pecorino-Romano or Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, reserving some of the pasta water.

2. While pasta is cooking, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Add a pinch of salt and the spinach to the saucepan (Yes, the pan will be full. Just stuff it all in.) Cover pot and reduce heat to medium-low. Let the mixture cook for about 4-5 minutes or until the spinach is completely wilted. *Add some of the basil at this time, and save a bit for garnish at the end.

3. Add the yogurt, avocado, and 2-3 Tablespoons of reserved pasta water to the spinach mixture. Stir it a bit, then buzz it up with an immersion blender. (If you don't have one, transfer to a food processor or a blender. Blend well, and return sauce to the pot.) Stir in the cheese, and add more pasta water if it seems too thick.

4. If your pasta is still hot, simply toss the pasta and sauce together in a large serving bowl. If it's not, then combine the past and sauce in one of the pots (preferably the larger one) and cook over medium low until everything is hot. Add salt and pepper, to taste and serve with the remaining basil as well as a sprinkle of grated cheese.

from Perry's Plate

Spring Salad with Versatile Vinaigrette

   We had a similar version of this at our Easter dinner and I just had to get the dressing recipe from Nick's cousin (in-law). It's a great base and really versatile, which is a good thing since as the weather warms my cravings turn to all things fruit and salad (and maybe some ice cream in there as well...). I've used this dressing all week and switched out some ingredients in the salad. I would put sesame sticks in every salad if it were up to me (and I hadn't run out already). If you haven't tried them, you really must. I scooped a small bag in bulk at Sprouts and was sad I didn't get more-you can get a decent sized bag at Trader Joe's, I just need to do some price comparing first or just continue to get small scoops so I don't eat them all at once.


Spring Salad

greens of choice, I had romaine and spring mix on hand
avocado, diced
strawberries, sliced
cucumbers, diced
red onion, diced
little sprinkling of feta
sesame sticks



Versatile Vinaigrette

1/2 cup. oil (I used grape seed oil)

2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar or raspberry vinegar

1/2 t. salt

2 Tbsp. all-fruit raspberry jam

Mix all together until well blended.

Other suggestions: peach jam, switching it up with different flavored vinegars (the Easter salad was make with a pomegranate vinegar)

Chocolate Coconut Squares

  These are a tasty treat that are perfect for me right now: only one saucepan, no oven required, ingredients in my pantry, easy for little hands to help, and something we'll all love to nibble on. The original recipe calls them 'granola bars,' but they tasted far too much like a dessert to have that label. Granola implies (though is rarely true) healthy, and these are not exactly a health food. That being said, at least in these 'granola bars' you can pronounce and identify every ingredient. Despite the peanut butter, these have a predominately chocolate and coconut taste. I cut them into smaller pieces so they were easy to enjoy a little bit at a time-especially for little hands.


Ingredients


2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1/4-1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup natural, smooth peanut butter
1 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/4-1/3 cup chocolate chips

Directions 

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut oil, honey, and peanut butter. Stir constantly until melted. Remove from heat.

2. Stir in oats until well mixed. Add coconut and chocolate chips. Pour into a foil-lined 8x8 pan. Refrigerate until cooled. Once cooled, turn pan over onto a cutting board and cut into bars. Store in the refrigerator.


adapted from  The Marathon Mom