Couscous & Veggies ..

Happy Monday Everyone! especially those of us who have a long weekend :) LONG weekends are the best!!!! Its so great to not have to go to work today, and to be able to do whatever I want. 

Hope everyone had a great weekend. I know I have been posting less than when I started, but I realized when I started blogging it was the summertime - and guess what? I was off of work.. so of course I blogged more, but I am still going so thats good. I am thankful to have all of my readers and followers!! 

Today, I am going to tell you about a super simple, literally like 10 min, dinner :) Those are my favorite - especially when they are healthy and you can make them after work in a jiffy!! 

Since it turned to fall and is now chilly out (woo my favorite) I love to be cozy at home when it is chilly out - I have been making more grains to warm up the meals. 

This meal is couscous and veggies - I don't really have a better name for it :)

Here we go!

Ingredients

1 onion chopped

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

1 head of broccoli,  chopped

1 cup of whole wheat couscous (you can change the amount, based on how many people you are serving)

Feta cheese or grated parm cheese 

Method

1. Cook couscous according to package directions - usually it is use 2 cups of water and 2 tbsp of olive oil, bring to a boil, once boiling, stir in couscous and remove from heat. Cover and let stand for 5 mins and fork to fluff :)

2. While the cous is cooking, heat 2 tsbp of olive oil in a skillet and add the onion to the skillet. Sautee the onion until it is tender, next, add the broccoli, sautee the broccoli until tender, and finally add the peppers and sautee until tender it should only take 6-7 minutes on medium heat.

3. Serve the couscous, top w/ the veggie and cheese of choice. You can also mix it all together, but w/ the couscous its easier to serve it first and add the veggies. 

If you want to add more veggies you can serve w/ a salad or some fresh whole grain bread. Either are great :) 

Or don't serve with anything else and its delicious and easy!! This is a light meal, but the cous makes it a little warmer for fall. BUT its great for summertime too! 

Stay tuned for butternut squash soup, stuffed cabbage, and chicken all in the CROCK POT!! After all it is the season for the crock pot (my favorite kitchen gadget)!

Enjoy your day  and healthy foods!!

Live Well xoxo

Fall Oaty Apple Cinnamon Muffins ..

AND another week begins :) Gotta love Mondays!! Not so much, but it was a gorg fall day!! The weekend was beautiful as well. I got to see so many of my friends this last weekend and many of them said they read my blog - how exciting :) Its so motivating to keep blogging when I know I have followers!!

Another thing that is great about this weather is THE CROCKPOT :) My favorite winter gadget. I will be blogging a lot of crockpot recipes coming up - since I use the thing constantly in the fall. The first one will come tomorrow :)

But first, I have this amazing apple muffin recipe. Its super nutritious and a GREAT snack. It taste delicious with a little cream cheese and a coffee at about 10:00AM - that's when my sweet tooth kicks in !!

So here we go.. Fall Oaty Apple Cinnamon Muffins..

Ingredients

1 2/3 Cup of Whole Wheat Flour (Be sure to get the 100% whole wheat - not enriched)
1/4 Cup of rolled oats
2 tsp of baking powder
1/3 cup of light brown sugar (so here's the deal w/ brown sugar - not the healthiest, but def healthier than regular white sugar and here is why -- the organic brown sugar is made from evaporated cane juice which is taken from organically grown sugar cane. It is not processed - the sugar cane is crushed/pressed to release the juice. The natural molasses is what makes it brown - so there ya have it.. natural at that :))
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2 large eggs (cage-free organic)
1 cup milk
1/2 cup of peanut oil
1 tsp of vanilla extract (pure)
2 apples, cored and grated (I used granny smith and did it with Gala apples as well) (also, a very easy way to grate the apples is by using your food processor if it has a grating disk)

Once you have all of your ingredients ready - its time to get mixing..

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 and get your muffin tin ready. I made about 18 regular sized muffins w/ this recipe. I did not use muffin wrappers, I greased the muffin tin and the muffins came right out perfectly :)

2. Mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl.

3. Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl and beat in the milk and oil. When blended, pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Add the vanilla extract and stir gently until combined - be sure not to over mix here.

4. Finally, stir in the apples and fill your muffin pans.

5. Cook in the oven for 25-30 minutes - Here is my trick, I ALWAYS under bake so I always do the least amount of time b/c they continue cooking in the pan while they are cooling.

6. Let them cool completely before removing from the pan and there ya go - a delicious batch of muffins!!

These are yummy and amazing!! Enjoy :)

Stay tuned for the crockpot recipes coming tomorrow!!!

Live Well xxoxo

Simply wrap it up...

Happy Wednesday!! We are halfway through the week woo :) I love halfway points!!! I have a really exciting weekend coming up - I am going to see all my lycoming loves at a wedding - those are always the best of times!!! But - until then, I'll be working and cooking, and cleaning away :)

I am always looking for healthy ideas for lunch - I love pb&j but sometimes it's nice to have something a little healthier.. So I have been thinking of some things and recently made an awesome wrap! It's full of veggies and nutrients and its filling!! I always pack a piece of fruit, an extra veggie and some nuts and fruit for snacks. Lunch is a great time to pack in the real food!!!

Wrapping it up...

Here is what you will need:

1 100% whole wheat wrap (I usually get mine from whole foods or trader joes -If you can find the sprouted Ezekiel brand, they are the best)
1 cup of greens (use any kind you have - spinach, arugula, romaine, spring mix -they are all equally good and delicious and if you want - mix a few kinds :)
1 ear of corn on the Cobb, cut off the Cobb
1 handful of chopped onions
1 handful of chopped cherry tomatoes
1 TBSP of feta cheese
1TBSP of your favorite salad dressing

If you want protein feel free to add tuna, chicken, beef, whatever works for you :)

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and toss with the dressing - when combined scoop it into the wrap and wrap it up!!! And viola! You have a delicious real healthy lunch. Especially healthy served with sides of fruits and veggies.

This can be made ahead of time (the night before) and it doesn't get soggy!

Hope this makes your lunch packing less stressful!!!

Live well xoxo

PB & J...

Long time no see - I know I know! This fall has been a little much for me.. Not sure why, but I guess getting back into the swing of things w/ work and the house and the dog and all of the fun stuff to do like cooking, cleaning, laundry, making lunches, and getting clothes ready for the next day - its been a little harder for me to find time to blog ;/ I promise it will get better :)

Fall has officially arrived - I cannot believe how fast time is flying.. Its almost October already and it will almost be my 1 year anniversary w/ my husband - CRAZINESS!! Time flies when you are having fun :)

The good thing is, although I wasn't writing, I was thinking about what I was going to right - that counts right? :) :) I always take pictures and constantly think and look up new recipes to share w/ you so don't worry - I never forget!! I just may not get around to writing it until the next week.

Today, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about something that I make homemade - NUT BUTTER!!!

So this used to be a staple for our lunches.. who doesn't love PB&J even if you are in your twenties.. I know I DO love PB&J SOO much :) Its like the best, but the ingredients aren't always that great! You all probably think that peanut butter isn't that bad for you, but if you look at the ingredients in the skippy or jiffy in the store, you would be very surprised there are like 15 ingredients.. why? I have NO idea.. its insane!! There is no reason why there should be 15 ingredients in Peanut Butter.

If you buy the organic kind, it often seperates and there are often still some additives.. So I thought there has to be a way to make peanut butter legit natural - and I found a way..I made my own :) It is delicious.. So I played w/ it a little bit.. it depends on how you like your peanut butter.

Here are a few things to remember - It will not be as creamy as the one from the store, it will taste a little less sweet, but it will be REAL :)

I purchase RAW peanuts - I try to get organic, but its sometimes hard to find and they can be a little pricey, I would say 9-10 times I buy raw organic peanuts and I dump them in the food processor and turn it on.... it spins and spins and spins and it will turn into a ball.. when it is going around in a ball you know it is pretty much done. I transfer it to a airtight container and plop it in the fridge and I have healthy peanut butter. You don't have to store it in the fridge, but it does last longer.

So - You are thinking.. how do I make it creamier/sweetier.. There are a few things you can do..
1. You can purchase not a raw peanut - possibly a honey roasted peanut (ORGANIC)
2. You can add honey to the peanuts before you start to process them

Either of those will change the consistency/sweetency :) I would suggest adding your own RAW honey rather than buying honey roasted peanuts - its more real and less processed.

This peanut butter is GREAT in smoothies, on PB&J's, with fruit or by the spoonful. Feel free to use the SAME recipe if you want to make other nut butters.. I have made almond and cashew. I haven't tried any others up to this point, but its worth a shot. This is especially economically for raw almond butter b/c if you buy organic raw almonds at Trader Joe's, they are about 4.99 per pound - you grind them up and you have your almond butter, but if you buy raw organic almond butter you can almost pay 15.00 for a jar.. its INSANE!

So - cut down on costs and eat healthier PB&J's with REAL nut butters :)

Live Well xoxo

Ps - Here are some pictures so you can see what it looks like (these are organic raw peanuts from trader joe's)

Butternut Squash.. Yummy for fall :)

How about the weather this week? AH-MAY-ZING :) I <3 the fall. Its the perfect time of year!! I have been loving making warm meals and coming home and putting on a sweatshirt.. whats better? Its the best sleeping weather too :)

I could go without the dark dark nights and the dark dark mornings, especially b/c its hindering my ability to run in the AM, buttt I now have a running partner (amanda) so I can run in the AM, but still I am over it being SO dark! Anyway - Its the perfect time of year .... 

So I made some delicious butternut squash - what a great fall meal.. 

I started off with a fresh medium butternut squash... 

Poke holes all over the squash with a fork or a knife.. I used a fork as you can see below - This will give it some air and allow it to cook all the way through.. 

 Place it in the pan (any time of pan that fits it :)) and put it in the oven on 400 degrees for about 60 mins.. I set the timer for 50 mins first and then cut it in half and cooked it for another 10 mins...

When it is donezo - it will be soft and you will be able to cut it easily in to cubes.. if yours is not soft, put it back in for a little longer.. 

If it's soft .. Cut it into cubes and toss it in a bowl .. 

Next, add One Red Onion - Chopped... 

 and.. Four Medium sized tomatoes - chopped... and a few cloves of garlic - chopped (I used 2)

season the veggies w/ Salt/Pepper/ 1 TBSP Olive Oil.. 

Pour it back into the pan.. it will be a little watery b/c of the tomatoes and the olive oil, but it will dry up once you plop it back in the oven :) 

Bake it for about 15 more minutes until the tomatoes and the onions are warm .. on the same degrees (400).. 

 When finished, top with shredded cheese (we used Mozz) and grated Parm cheese..
See below - Yummy..

This was SO delicious - it was filling as well and again CLEAN and all veggies. I served with a salad and some fresh italian bread.. Feel free to try other veggies w/ this as well. I didn't have anything else in the house so I used what I had, but I am sure this is great w/ peppers, even broccoli or cauliflower, some corn as well.. whatever you have mix it together..

If you want more carbohydrates - feel free to serve over brown rice, quinoa, or any healthy whole grain.

Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday and Wednesday as well :) 

Live Well xoxo 

Lots of Veggies and Whole Wheat Pasta...

So I grew up in an Italian Family and we literally ate pasta 4-5 times a week!! Not whole wheat either - regular homemade flour pasta.. and boy oh boy was it delicious. So I realize now that its not that healthy to eat pasta that much, so we don't eat it often, but when we do we eat 100% whole grain or whole wheat and we load the dish with veggies.. We also don't eat extra bread with the meal and usually add a salad in there as well. I need my pasta fix every once in awhile, but its ok b/c we are combo eaters and everything is ok in moderation :)

So I will call this LOTS of Veggies and Yummy Whole Wheat Pasta w/ Mozz cheese ..

Start off w/ all of our ingredients set out and ready to be prepared :)

 To serve 4, you will need 1lb of 100% whole grain or whole wheat pasta.   I used shells, but really any shape will work..

Put the water on for the pasta first and get that boiling so you can get your other ingredients together while your pasta is cooking.. I usually cook the pasta for about 10 mins in the boiling water b/c I like it al dente :)

In the meantime, chop up 1 onion and place it in a skillet with about 2 table spoons of olive oil.. Let that simmer until the onion is soft.. Stir frequently :)

 Next, chop up 1 Bell Pepper (any color works) and add that to the onion. At this time you can also chop 2 cloves of garlic and add that to the skillet as well.

By this point, your pasta should be in the water. If your pasta is in, you can stir the veggies and watch the pasta - and take some time here to clean up or set the table :) You will have about 5 mins waiting time..

When the pasta has 5 more minutes to cook, add the 1 1-lb bag or organic frozen peas - Feel free to use fresh as well. I just had some organic frozen ones in the freezer that I decided to use up :) 

You can place them in frozen and they can cook for about 3 minutes and they should be warm... 

 Finally, Once the peas are warm add 1 pint of organic cherry/grape tomatoes. I cut the tomatoes in half and they are last to go in the pot b/c you don't want them to be mushy. Be sure to stir the mixture as it can get dry and sticky to the pot if not ..

At this point, your pasta should be almost done, if not all the way done..

 Grab a large bowl that you can use to combine all of your ingredients and chop up some whole mozz cheese. You can buy the small little balls or the regular block of mozz from the cheese section of your grocer - of course organic is better :)

To the same bowl, add two large TBSP of Basil Pesto.  You can make your own pesto for sure. I used the whole foods brand which is all natural and doesn't have any additives .. 

All of your ingredients should be ready to combine.. Put half of the veggie mixture in the same bowl w/ the pesto and mozz and half of the pasta.. Stir until combined.. Add 2 more tablespoons of basil pesto and stir until all combined.. You be the judge w/ the pesto.. if you want more add more less add less.. Totally depending on what you want.. 

Once all combined you have your final product :) A delicious easy meal packed w/ veggies and the enjoyment of pasta :) 

 I served this w/ a leafy green salad and feel free to top w/ parm cheese as well. This is also GREAT left over for lunches etc. Of course I made too much but Cort and I enjoyed it in our lunch for a few days.

This a great time of year for fun more warm meals with the changing in the weather. Enjoy :)

Live Well xoxo

Squishity Squash ...

AHH - How about this fall weather? How amazing! It has been beautiful around here and that has made for an awesome mood and for awesome squash and in season fruits and veggies :)

Fall came so quick this year, but I am so excited! It is one of my favorite seasons - everything about it.. Pumpkin, cinnamon, apple, leaves, great weather, baking :) ahh all the good stuff! I had my first Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks this week w/ my friend Christine from work and it was AMAZING! I hope you are all enjoying fall as much as I am!

Ok so let's get down to business!!! This is another amazing spaghetti squash recipe. I made this for my husband, brother, and his girlfriend - everyone loved it! Of course, Cort complained but he ate a lot of it which means he liked it :)

The best thing about spaghetti squash is.. its SO SIMPLE. Its like the easiest thing to cook and work with and it takes on the taste of whatever you make it with! Its awesome..

So this is a cheesy spaghetti squash casserole..

Let's get started...

You will need 1- 3lb Spaghetti Squash

Pre-heat your oven to 400 and cut the quash in half lengthwise and seed it.. Place the squash on the baking sheet drizzle with 1 Tablespoon of olive olive and place cut side down (skin up) - Place in the oven and roast for 40-50 minutes (45 was perfect)...

When its finished, it will look like the picture below..Turn it over like I did and let it cool until you are able to handle it..

While the squash was cooking, you could the other part ready.. I love recipes that allow you to multitask!!! .. 

In a large bowl you will combine - 1 15-Oz container of Ricotta Cheese (organic, no rBT), 1 large egg, 4 cups of baby spinach (you can chop it or put it in whole, I went w/ whole), 1 clove of garlic (minced), and a pinch of salt and pepper.. 

Your Squash will then be ready so you can scoop the insides of the squash into the same bowl with the ricotta cheese mixture.. Like below..

Once it is all combined you can transfer it to a casserole dish.. I sprayed the bottom of the dish w/ the olive oil spray just in case it decided to stick..

 Once it is transferred top it with grated mozz cheese (use as much as you need - the more cheese the better right :))

 Place it back in the oven and bake for about 20 mins until it is brown and bubbling... and the final product is below..

This was delicious :) I served it with salad, sauteed kale, and some fresh whole wheat bread (baguette) with oil for dipping.. It was a delicious REAL meal.

I will be back soon with a great pasta recipe and also an amazing butternut squash recipe - I also plan to bake some healthy apple muffins - Stay Tuned :)

Enjoy and Live Well xoxo

Simplest Dinner EVER :)

Who doesn't love a super simple EASY meal? .. I don't think anyone! Especially during the week. We all know the daily grind ALL tooo welll and sometimes it seems much easier to go out and grab something for dinner, but .... here I come to the rescue :) In Twenty minutes you can have a super simple dinner that is much healthier than eating something processed that you order for take out.. 

So let's get started.. So Simple - only 4 ingredients plus salt and paper.. WOO

Start of with.....

2 Pieces of Chicken -- Be sure to buy the organic grass fed, I had these two pieces left over from some I got from the CSA this summer. 

1 Head of organic cauliflower

2 corn on the cobb - We have to fit this in before summer is over.. I always miss corn once the fall/winter comes :) 

And .. We need some seasoning.. I am not great at choosing seasoning, but I always go to the good old spice classics. I used seasoned salt for this recipe, Old Bay Seasoning also works GREAT! And of course our good old organic EVOO .. 

Prep the chicken first so you can put it aside and wash your hands .. All I did was sprinkle the season salt on both sides.. I didn't use olive oil or anything else, just seasoned salt... 

 Next, let's prep our corn, I LOVE cooking the corn this way, it can be done this way either on the grill or in the oven. All I do is season it with season salt and wrap it in tinfoil.. SUPER SIMPLE :)

Finally our cauliflower - YUMMY.. cut the cauliflower and toss with some EVOO salt and pepper.. 

Once you have all of your ingredients prepped.. heat up your grill.. This can be done in the oven as well.. I turn the heat up in the oven to around 400-450 when I do this recipe in the oven.. 

Put the corn on first and set a timer for 5 mins... When the time is up place the cauliflower on and spin the corn, set the timer for another 5 mins...turn the corn again and place the chicken on and set the timer for 5 more mins.. Finally, stir and turn the corn and flip the chicken for the last 5-6 mins.. This timing is pretty much on target.. it literally is exactly 20 mins and all of this is complete :) 

Below is your final product.. 

Yummy :) Serve with salad and cantaloupe .. This is super healthy and contains so many healthy vitamins and minerals and even protein.. No need for the extra carbs. Keep in mind I made this meal for two people, but feel free to double it for a family of four or triple it for a family of 6 :) Its so simple and literally is finished in a half hour max.. an AWESOME weeknight treat! Nothing crazy, super simple..

I can't wait to post upcoming fall recipes and in season fall foods! More to come soon!! 

Enjoy & Live Well xoxo 

Zucchini Pizzas...

What a day!! This week is FLYING by.. before I know it its the next day already.. It has been a bit difficult going from relaxed costa rica life to crazy school life.. its been a long week!! Poor people in Costa Rica w/ that hurricane today! They are in our thoughts and prayers.. it was pretty close to where Cort and I were too ... eek..

Well as promised I made awesome zucchini pizza's for dinner on Monday - They were delicious and super healthy and natural..

Here's the recipe :) ...

Start off with your zucchini.. I got an amazing one from the CSA last week .. it was GRANDE so I only needed one, but if you have a small one.. you may need more than one..   Slice the zucchini, they can be thick or thin.. whatever you prefer! :)

 Next, cut up your fresh mozzy cheese... I just used one, but again, you be the judge based on how many pizza's you want to make..

You will also need some Organic tomato sauce.. Muir Glen is a great brand b/c they don't add a lot of sugar. 

 Pre-heat your skillet with olive oil so that the skillet is hot.. Once hot, brush each side of the zucchini rounds w/ oil and place on the skillet.. Brown on both sides (about 3 mins or so per side) or until there are marks in the zucchini (if you use a grill pan)...

Once browned in the skilled, transfer the zucchini to a baking sheet.. You don't need to grease the sheet since it is probably non-stick and the zucchini already has oil.. 

 The best thing about this recipe is that you don't have to rush and you can actually make the zucchini pizzas before hand and clean up as you go b/c they don't have to be hot on the cookie sheet b/c they go in the oven right after .. Once they are on the cookie sheet, you can top w/ sauce.. more or lesss.. again - Your preference :)

I added a little salt and pepper and some italian seasonings and then I placed the cheese on top.. 

 Once they are ready, you can turn the oven on broil and place the baking sheet in the oven.. cook for about 10 mins until the cheese is melted and a little brown.. and Voila! You are done.. How easy and simple is that? SUPER SIMPLE!!

Here is the finished product.. YUMM..

You can serve this as an appetizer, or the full meal.. I served it with a fresh mixed green salad and some corn on the cobb.. ALL REAL CLEAN FOOD !! and guess what?? It was filling.. we weren't hungry for the rest of the night!!! 

More fun stuff to come!!

Live well xoxo 

Rainy Labor Day Baked Good .. :)

Ahh what a rainy gross labor day!! BOO ... I hope everyone had an amazing weekend so far, and will enjoy the rest of this rainy day.. On the up side, its a great day to relax and maybe BAKE!? WOO 

SO - Before I go on w/ this post, I am totally NOT a baker! I usually don't bake that much, I love to - especially in the fall, but I am most definitely better at cooking!! Since its a rainy day, my husband is working on our basement, I already went to yoga, cleaned, went grocery shopping and did laundry I thought.. HMMM I have got to do something productive today - I decided to use some of the food that I have here to bake something sweet to have this week :) 

I make a very good banana bread, but I decided to experiment today w/ Banana Muffins!! Yummm.. They turned out awesome and I used ALL healthy ingredients :) 

Here's the deal, when I look up recipes or want to make something, I usually look at a bunch of different ones and then I choose the best one and even then tweak it a little bit to be what I want.. Sometimes, It def does not come out as planned, but recently I have been pretty lucky! When I write the ingredients here and the step by step process, keep in mind that I always use organic/all natural ingredients no matter what the recipe says and it usually comes out fine.. OK - So lets get started..

Super Simple Delicious Banana Muffins

To start you need two mixing bowls, an electric mixer, and some spoons...

Step 1 - The first three ingredients needs to be mixed together until smooth in a big mixing bowl (use the bigger bowl for this step b/c you will put the rest of the ingredients in this bowl).. 

 The first three ingredients are .. 2 Bananas (these can be really ripe or kind of ripe), 1 large egg, and 1/4 cup of fat free milk...

Note: The eggs are cage free organic and the milk is organic with no rBT.. both are from my awesome CSA :)

Add all three to the bowl and get ready to mix... The trick is, before you use the mixer mush up the bananas so that they are easier to mix until smooth.. 

 After you mix, it will look like this..

Next, you need to mix in the dry ingredients... 

1 Cup of whole wheat flour...

1 TBSP baking power

1/2 TSP of baking soda

1/8 TSP of salt

Fold those ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix .. :) 

At this point, pre-heat your oven to 350 and get your muffin cups ready.. You can use the paper muffin cups, I didn't have any today so I used my good old mister (you can see it in the back w/ the green lid) and I greased the muffin pan and filled each cup about 3/4 of the way full.. This recipe makes 12 muffins.. 

Now for my favorite part! :).. Add a few chocolate chips to the top of each muffin.. I added between 5 and 10 to the top of each.. 

Bake on 350 for around 15 minutes.. I ended up taking them out around 13 mins and they were absolutely perfect.. Check them by stick a toothpick into one :) 

I thought that they would be difficult to remove from the muffin pan, but it was SUPER easy and it came right out.. 

AND - Here is the final product... serve by itself, warm it up and serve w/ some peanut butter and its a delicious snack..

The best yet is that there is NO added sugar and NO butter! :)

WOOO!!! I am going to go eat one!!!

Stay tuned for Zucchini Pizzas - Tonight's dinner!

Live Well xoxo