Fruity Granola

I absolutely cannot be trusted around Linda F's Nutty Granola ! It is worse than crack. (OK, not that I know what a crack addiction is like, but... well ya'know.)
So, I came up with a plan to trim the calories just a bit. The final product is not bad at all. Actually, it's very good.

Joni's Fruity Granola

Spray coat the bottom of a large roaster with cooking spray. Heat oven to 250 and add the following:

1/2 cup peanuts

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup pecan halves

1/2 cup pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

1/2 cup flax seeds

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup soy nuts

1 1/2 cups oats

In a saucepan melt:

1/3 cup smart balance margarine

2 tablespoons canola oil

1/2 cup cherry sugar free preserves

1/2 cup splenda

1 tsp vanilla

Pour over the nuts and seeds and mix well. Put in oven and stir every 20 minutes or so until dry. Mine took about 2 1/2 hours.

Thanks again to Linda F and her awesome recipes!

Ricotta Muffins

I want to write this down before I forget the recipe. These are really GOOD! Picture is of them filled halway up, then I put a little SF cherry preserves. (Of course you need to fill them the rest of the way up!)

1/2 cup ricotta cheese (I used lowfat)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tablespoon butter/margarine - melted
1 tablespoon milk (I used skim)

1/2 cup vanilla protein powder
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup ground flax
1 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 cup Splenda
Preheat oven to 350 and prepare a mini - muffin pan
Mix wet and dry and then add the wet to dry. Combine with spoon. Fill 12 of the muffin tins with the batter and bake for 12-15 minutes until set and the edges are brown.

Cool for 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack. I store these in a zip top bag in the refrigerator. They seem to keep more moist there.

Options - fill muffin tins halfway up, add a dab of SF jelly or a chocolate chip and then fill the rest of the way! yum!

Fluffy Veggie Frittata

I'm not sure this is exactly a traditional frittata, but it was good and it was made with eggs. Now that our hens are laying a whole heck of a lot of eggs every day, we'll be eating a lot of them. But, "On no!" you say, "Eggs are bad for you!". Nope, they aren't. Studies show there is no association between consumption of dietary cholesterol and your serum cholesterol levels. It's the saturated fats that will get you. It's the incredible edible egg! :)

Fluffy Veggie Frittata

5 eggs
1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup mozzarella
1 cup cooked broccoli, chopped fine
1 cup shredded zucchini
salt and pepper to taste
Whisk together eggs, milk and cheeses and then add in the vegetable. Spray nonstick spray in a large skillet with high sides (make sure it is oven proof). Add the egg mixture and place on a medium-low heat, covered until set. Then uncover and place under the broiler until the top is browned.
We all really liked this. The ricotta makes it fluffy. Experiment with different cheeses and veggies.

Pumpkin Breakfast Cookie.

Boy, I've had a lot of fun with the breakfast cookies! So easy and quick to make. I made a version using pumpkin and some diced apple. I'm sure raisins would work. (Though I'm not a big fan of the little wrinkly guys- I mean if you're going to let a grape rot, you might as well turn it into wine...)
Let me know what variations you come up with!

Pumpkin/Apple Breakfast Cookie

¾ cup plain pumpkin
1 egg
(Mix and set aside)

½ cup Splenda
½ cup unsweetened coconut
½ cup ground flax seed
½ cup protein powder (choc or vanilla)
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
1 small apple – peeled and diced

Mix dry and add to wet ingredients. Pile on a well greased cookie sheet, parchment paper or silicone sheet. These retain the shape you put them in and don't really rise. So keep them spread out in a cookie shape. Then bake at 350 for 20 minutes. These don't “bake” as much as they “set up”. So when the cookie is firm to touch in the middle, they are done. This makes 9 cookies. I don't have the stats on them. They are probably similar to my other breakfast cookie.

Let cool completely and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. (There is no sugar to preserve them). I also have a request to make these without the coconut. I'll try and let you know.

Cauliflower Rice

I had a question on how to make the cauliflower rice. I'll tell you how I do it. I'm sure there are fancier methods using "ricers" and such, but I don't own one and this is easy enough I don't need to buy one.

First, start with a fresh head of cauliflower. (Frozen would not work, though you could make some yummy mashed cauliflower with frozen...)
Next clean it up and chop into sizes that will fit into your food processor. (Not a mini processor, that would NOT work). I use the stem and the florets.
Then put the shredding blade on your food processor. Just start shredding up all that yummy stuff.
When you're done, heat some oil in a pan with high sides - either a large skillet or soup pot. Lower the heat to a medium and add the cauliflower, gently cooking and stirring until it's tender (doesn't take very long - maybe 5 or 10 minutes) You don't want it to brown, just get tender.
Now you can use right away or refrigerate or freeze for later on.

Easy peasy!!

Crunchy Chicken Broccoli Stir Fry

This was VERY yummy served over a bed of shredded cauliflower instead of rice. My kids love the shredded, cooked cauliflower and actually in our pre-low carb days, were never regular rice fans.

Heat 3 cups frozen broccoli in the microwave and let sit.

In a big glass or stainless steel bowl stir together

1 1/2 pounds cut up chicken

2 TB corn starch

1 TB soy sauce

1 tsp ginger powder

Let this concoction sit while you make the sauce.

For the sauce, stir together

1/2 cup chicken broth

4TB cooking sherry

2TB soy sauce

1 TB corn starch

1 tsp sugar (or sugar sub)

pepper and salt

Now heat 1 1/2 TB oil in a wok. Add in 1-2 tsp red pepper flakes and cook until browned. Add in chicken mixture and cook until done. Add in sauce and broccoli and cook until bubbling and thick. Stir in 1/4 cup slivered almonds just before taking off the heat. Serve over the cauliflower or rice.

VERY TASTY - 5 out of 5 stars from the family.

Here's a tip - I always make my cauliflower on the weekend. I shred it up, cook it up and freeze it for use later in the week or whenever.

Ricotta Custard - Who Needs Lasagna?

A nice cheesy custard topped with your favorite pasta sauce and melted mozzarella - sound good? It is!

Ricotta Custard

16 oz low fat ricotta cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesean

1/2 cup mozzarella

1/4 tsp each - onion powder, garlic powder, dried basil, dried oregano, salt (more of whatever you like)

1/2 cup milk

4 eggs

1 cup of your favorite pasta sauce

mozzarella for topping

Oven 350 degrees

Spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick coating.

Mix all the custard ingredients together (NOT the sauce or extra mozarella) and pour into baking dish. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes until the top is set. Remove from oven and top with sauce and cheese. Return to oven for 15 minutes. Turn on broiler for last 5 minutes to brown the top.

Let this sit for about a half hour before serving. It sets up nice and you wont burn your mouth!