Banana 'Nice Cream'

If you spend any amount of time on the internet looking for recipe ideas, you've probably come across more than one way to make this yummy taste treat using frozen bananas.  Push come to shove, I'd probably put this in my top 10 new favorite foods. For breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert, it's healthy enough to eat at any time of day.  And I do.

Here's the long and short of it. Buy a whole bunch of bananas and make sure they ripen before you cut them for freezing.  The more brown spots on your banana peels, the sweeter the fruit.  After you've done this, the hard part is over.  

Check out the recipe and variations below:

Banana ‘Nice Cream’

Serves: 2

Do Ahead Tip: 

3 ripe bananas, broken into chunks and frozen

Directions: Put frozen bananas in a blender or food processor and turn the machine on to blend them. At first they will want to spin around and stay icy, but keep at it, stopping the machine and using spatula or wooden spoon to scrape the sides and push toward the bottom. Then, walk away and do something else for 10-20 minutes – Email, vacuum, wash some dishes, do some yoga poses). At some point, your bananas will suddenly go creamy and custardy, like soft-serve ice cream. Serve immediately and enjoy.  Freeze any leftovers. I usually eat 1/2 for breakfast and leave the other half for a nighttime dessert.

**Variations and Optional additions: Add other frozen fruit and ingredients to custom tailor your nice cream. You might try the follow combinations:

Bananas + 1 cup frozen strawberries, raspberries or frozen cherries

Bananas + 1 cup frozen blueberries, blackberries or frozen mangoes

Bananas + 1 Tablespoon peanut butter or almond butter

Bananas + 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder

Bananas + 1 cup frozen peaches + 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Bananas + 1 teaspoon maple extract + 1 Tablespoon maple syrup + 2 Tablespoons chopped walnuts

Maple Walnut Nice Cream

**I recommend you try the simple One-Ingredient nice cream first.  Then throw a party for your taste buds by adding some of your personal favorites. 

Notes:  The beauty of this recipe is the flexibility and realizing how simple it is to make.  Remember.  The riper the bananas the sweeter the nice cream.

Check out How to Make "An Apple-A-Day Taste Treat" Anytime of Day! by Kimberly Ylitalo on Snapguide.

Oatmeal On-The-Go

If you are any kind of foodie at all, you've probably seen this idea for 'no-cook' oatmeal breakfast before. Once I saw it and tried it, I began seeing recipes everywhere.  BALL canning jars are very trendy right now. Who knows, maybe that was the initial appeal.  Since I love oatmeal and eat it several times a week, I thought it would be a nice change.  It's turned out to be a  great 'grab and go' meal; I love that it's prepared ahead of time.  Additionally, it's another way to get added chia seeds and flaxseed in my diet.

Basic Recipe:

1/2 c. old fashioned oats
1 tsp. chia seeds
1 tsp. ground flaxseed
1/2 c. almond milk
sweetener (I like a few drops of Stevia)
or a few shakes of Erythritol

Personalize your oatmeal by adding one of these variations:

2 T. pure pumpkin,  1/2 tsp. vanilla extract, 1 T. raisins, 1 T. chopped walnuts, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 very ripe banana (mashed), 1 T. chopped pecans, 1-2 chopped dates, 1 T. dried blueberries, 1/2 tsp. almond extract

1/2 c. applesauce (or chopped apple), 1 T. dried cranberries, 1 T. pecans, 1 tsp. vanilla, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Mix all ingredients well, spoon into your favorite air-tight container and refrigerate overnight.  Oatmeal will be ready to grab and go in the morning.  Or, make in the morning and eat for a light supper meal with fresh fruit.

I prepare several servings at one time and have a week's worth of breakfasts at the ready.  YUMMERS!

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Now I remember why I didn't post this recipe immediately.  For awhile there, I seemed to be loving every new recipe I was trying from the "Forks Over Knives Cookbook," and not coming up with anything original. Fast forward many months, and at least a dozen 'bakings' of this recipe. I have tried and tested enough times to recommend this deliciousness to anyone and everyone, despite their dietary leanings.

I've tweaked this to suit me and mine.  I use a combination of dry Stevia and Erythritol for the sweetener.  The original recipe calls for maple syrup, like this is a healthier alternative to regular sugar.  Really?  Use whatever sweetener you like where it calls for it (too many 'scientific opinions' on this topic.  I am not trying to convince anyone of which one is right or better or healthier).  I also use the lowest calorie bread where it calls for whole-wheat bread.  Why add extra calories where you won't even taste the difference?  Sara Lee has a nice lower calorie-per-slice variety and so does Nature's Own, multi-grain or whole wheat.  Everything else in the recipe is pretty straight forward from the cookbook's recipe.

Gather together your ingredients and preheat the oven to 350 degrees:

In a large bowl, whisk together ...

1 1/4 c. pumpkin pure  (save the leftovers from your 15-oz. can, freeze in ice cube tray and pull out individual servings to make a pumpkin spice latte).
1 c. almond milk (30 cal. per cup)
1/2 c. sweetener (I use 1/4 c. dry Stevia in the Raw and 1/4 c. Erythritol)
2 t. vanilla extract

Add ...

2 T. cornstarch
1/2 t. salt (can omit; I use about 1/4 t.)
1/2 t. cinnamon
3/4 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. allspice
1/8 t. ground cloves

...and whisk well.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding topped with banana/peach
sorbet and bits of dried dates

Cube 8 slices stale whole-wheat bread into 1-inch pieces (about 6 cups) a fold into pudding batter until well coated.

Add 1/4 - 1/2 cup raisins and stir just until mixed.

Pour pudding into 8" x 8" non stick or silicone baking pan.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and firm to the touch.  If additional baking is needed, check every five minutes for doneness.  Served warm is TASTY!

I refrigerate leftovers and then pop a slice into the microwave for about 10-15 seconds before serving.

In a hurry in the morning?  Cut a slice of this for a quick 'on the go' breakfast!

Yummers!

Whole Wheat/Flaxseed Bread

Man cannot live by bread alone but I'd sure like to try.  Torn from a magazine ad boasting 'cholesterol lowering properties,' I kept this recipe and stuck it in a folder that rarely sees the light of day.  Then, I cleaned out my recipes, threw away all the oldies calling for cheese and meat and oils.  This recipe made the cut.  

Here's the exact quote at the top of the recipe's page:  "The Amazing Bread That Works Exactly Like Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs But Without the Side Effects" Don't hold your breath.   But the bread is tasty and at least when I make it, I know the ingredients that go into it.  No preservatives, so after a couple of days, I toss it in the fridge.  And if you are making just for yourself...I'd cut the finished baked loaf in half and wrap it well and put it in the freezer for another time.  Perhaps when you have a neighbor over for tea or coffee and a fruit plate.  Just sayin'.

Let's get to it... here is the list of ingredients as copied from the original recipe (mostly) and I've added my notes showing the adjustments I've made after several tries with the recipe.  

1 2/3 cups warm water

1 pkg. active dry yeast

3 T. honey or 1/8 cup sugar (I use Erythritol dry sweetener)

1 T. oil (safflower or olive) -- * I use grapeseed oil because I have it on hand

1/2 t. salt ( may be omitted) but I use it...so as not to mess with the leavening properties

1 cup ground flaxseed meal (use 2/3 cup whole seeds if you are grinding yourself)

3 cups fresh whole wheat flour + additional cup of flour for kneading--I used whole wheat pastry flour for this and don't always use the entire extra cup...just depends on the stickiness of your load while kneading.

** I use an additional ingredient:  2-4 t. of Wheat Gluten added in with the wheat flour.  I have it on hand, don't have any issues with gluten and I like my bread to get that height that is sometimes missing when you use whole wheat flour.  This is just the way I do my bread but will make a perfectly tasty loaf without the added gluten.

Dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside until bubbly (5-10 minutes)

Mix in sugar...

salt...

oil...

flaxseed...

and half of the wheat flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Mix well.
Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups of wheat flour until it makes a soft,
kneadable dough.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface.

Begin kneading, adding just enough flour to keep dough from being sticky.

Knead for 10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic.  Preferably done while listening
and singing along to your favorite tunes.  I think the bread knows and rises better if you do this ;-)

Optional method of forming loaf, learned from my friend, Melissa White-Dunn, many years ago.
Roll it out into long rectangle.  Helps eliminate air bubbles.  Really makes a
difference when you are using white flour.  With this whole wheat, not so much.
I still like rolling it out and thinking of Melissa!

Roll up bread into a loaf and tuck neatly into your bread pan.

I like to score the top of the loaf into 1/2"segments (use a very sharp knife, going only 1/4" deep).
Makes it easier to slice the bread after baking.

Cover loosely and let rise in warm place for one-two hours, until doubled in bulk.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes in center of your oven; Your bread is finished when the loaf is browned on top and sounds hollow when tapped.  (My oven is a bit off so I have to let my loaf bake a bit longer and it never gets very brown on top.  I probably take it out of the oven too soon but since I always toast my bread before eating, I prefer it a little underbaked that overbaked.)

Cool for 10 minutes and remove from the pan.

Yummers!

Quick Banana Breakfast To Go

Have been getting back to some streamlined nutritarian recipes and this one is taken right from the pages of Eat To Live, by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

Quick Banana Breakfast To Go

Serves 1

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (I used 1/2 cup)

1 banana sliced

1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

1/4 cup pomegranate juice (I used cranberry)

1 Tablespoon chopped Walnuts

1/2 Tablespoon raw sunflower seeds

1 Tablespoon dried currants (optional - I used raisins)

Combine all ingredients in microwave -proof bowl.  Heat in microwave for 3 minutes.

Can be eaten hot or cold.

YUMMERS!

Not your mother's baked apples

I recently created this scrumptious new breakfast while trying to find other tasty ways to enjoy oatmeal and fruit.   Turns out this could also stand in as a dessert, it's that delicious.  Here's what I came up with and it's fast becoming a staple in my kitchen.

Here's what you'll need:

1 apple, with skin, cored and chopped (my current favorite is honey crisp)

1 zucchini, peeled and chopped (you can keep the peel on if you like the taste and if you buy organic)
1-2 T. raisins

1/2-1 t. cinnamon
1 T. dry sweetener (I use 1/2 Stevia and 1/2 coconut sugar)
2 T. water
a couple- three squeezes of fresh lime or lemon

Topping:  1/4 rolled oats, 1 T. chopped walnuts, 1 T. ground flax seed (**Lightly toast in a fry pan on the stove top while your apple/zucchini is cooking in the microwave.)

Toss first 7 ingredients together in a microwavable dish and cover loosely.

Set your microwave on power level 7 or 8 and cook for 5 minutes, depending on your microwave's output. You may want to give it another minute, but check it before you do.  Just make sure you have enough moisture so the contents doesn't dry out or burn.  Five minutes on power level 8 works perfect for me.

**While apple and zucchini are cooking, in a fry pan over medium heat, gently toast the oats, nuts and flax seeds for a few minutes, stirring frequently so it doesn't burn.  The flax seed will go from "perfect to burned in 5 seconds."  Remove from heat and set aside.

Sprinkle your oats over baked apple & zucchini and eat!  I like to stir my oats into the fruit and mix with the syrup at the bottom of the baked yummy stuff....and let the oats swell a bit.  Eat and Enjoy!

Ohsoyummersgoodforus!  Breakfast or Dessert!  You choose.  Hmmm, maybe I'll have for breakfast and dessert!

I've also made this on the stove top...just takes a bit more time, more attention, more stirring.  Do whatever floats your zucchini!

Please, Sir, I want some more...

In my humble opinion, this is one of the most nutritious and filling breakfasts ever! Hot oatmeal cereal, sweetened or not, with milk or not, some dried fruit and nuts or with fruit on the side.

Old Fashioned oats is good enough for this granola girl but you may prefer steel cut oats.  I've even picked up the 'quick cook' oats since learning that they are nutritionally identical to the 'old fashioned' and I can make my own "instant oatmeal" packet-like servings with the 'quick cook' variety.

I prefer my hot cereal with a bit of almond milk and a few pumps of the Parkay spray, a dusting of cinnamon and dry Stevia sweetener and a few raisins tossed into the oatmeal and water before cooking.

Two methods of cooking I have success with:

1)  For old fashioned oats, I use a large 4-cup, glass measuring bowl.  Mix together 1/2 cup oats and 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of raisins.  Cook for 5-6 minutes on power level 6. 

2)  For "quick cook" oats, I place 1/2 cup oats and 3/4 c. water with a few raisins in a regular microwavable cereal bowl.  Add your sweetener and any other spices, too.   Microwave for 1 - 1 1/2 minutes on high.  This will make your oatmeal a bit stickier than method number one but I love making my own "instant oatmeal" to my own taste and liking. 

Just like those 'flavored instant oatmeal' packets you buy at the store, you can  DIY (Do It Yourself)) at home; this is so much healthier because you know what has been added.  Add some of these to your cereal after it's finished cooking

*half a banana with 1 tsp of cocoa powder

*sugar and cinnamon (I use stevia and cinnamon) with pureed pumpkin or leftover sweet potato
*grated apple with a tablespoon of raw almonds, walnuts or pecans, chopped
*blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries and drizzle of 100% maple syrup
 

 

 

Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Sweet and simple.  Throw in a little more milk for a larger serving portion and a few ice cubes to make it go farther.  I've added 'spinach' to this smoothie before but decided to keep this recipe in the 'ungreen' category.  This taste treat is also worthy of a mid-afternoon snack break or after dinner dessert.

There should be a comma after "almond milk" as the 'vanilla/unsweetened' describes the almond milk.  I prefer the 30-calories-per-cup variety.  Yummy stuff!

Enjoy!

Favorite winter fruit salad

I like my pineapple chunky, from the can, in its own juice. I use some juice in the salad and reserve some for my morning Emerald Elixir smoothie.  By all means, use fresh pineapple if you prefer!

Tangerine Cuties are abundant at this time of year.  I peel them, pull apart the sections, remove any seeds and cut each section into thirds.

I like my grapes purple and seedless and cut them in half.

I buy only unsweetened coconut, prefer my almonds unsalted and I use very few dried cranberries--just enough so I get one or two in every bite.  If I have an orange on hand, I zest it and squeeze some of the orange juice over the entire batch of mixed fruit.

Making extra of this salad is a good idea!  Keep it in a sealed container in the refrigerator to have on hand for any time of the day or evening.  Perfect dessert or for that time you desire just a little something 'sweet.'

ENJOY!

Ninja Blender

I purchased a Ninja Kitchen Pulse System last spring and love it!  It's been worth it for the smoothies alone.  This recipe came from the recipe booklet that came with my Ninja blender.  I made a couple of changes and substitutions throughout the summer to suit my taste buds; mostly keeping the basic recipe you see here.

EMERALD GREEN ELIXER

1/2 cup white grape juice (I save & use the juice from my canned pineapple)

1/2 small banana, peeled

1/2 cup baby spinach leaves

1 kiwi, peeled

2 tsp. raw, unfiltered honey (I use dry sweetener)

5-6 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in the blender and pulse until smooth.  Serve right away!

Yummers!

Bread Pudding

Preheat oven 350 degrees 

Coat an 8 or 9-inch oven-safe baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

4  1/2 slices stale bread, cut into small 1/2"-1" cubes (I use my 45-calorie-per-slice whole grain bread but any bread will work!) and sprinkle evenly in bottom of your baking dish.

Top bread cubes with 1/4 - 1/2 cup raisins   (Optional)

In a separate bowl beat 3 eggs (I use two real eggs and 1/4 cup of Egg Beaters),  1 1/2 skim milk, 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup Splenda, 1 tsp. vanilla and 1 tsp. cinnamon.

Pour over bread cubes.   Gently press bread into egg mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes.   Insert a knife or toothpick and when it comes out clean, pudding is done!

Serve warm or cold;

top with dollop of spray whipped topping.

Refrigerate left over portions.

Note:  Want to make smaller batch? Use the same dish, same oven temperature and reduce ingredients to the following:   3 slices bread, 2 eggs, 1 cup skim milk, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon;  bake for 30 minutes (keep an eye out that you do not over bake).