Bruschetta

Printable Version of Bruschetta Recipe

Andrew and I LOVE bruschetta.  We have made this recipe a few times and everyone always loves it.  I was rushing while I made it today for my dad's party so I didn't take a lot of pictures.  Let me know if you have any questions! 

Ingredients: 

- 4 cups peeled seeded and chopped tomatoes (any variety but Romas work well)

- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves sliced very thinly (see notes at bottom)

- 4 cloves fresh garlic, smashed and very finely chopped 

- 2 Tbsp fresh oregano minced

- 1 Tbsp fresh thyme minced

- Pinch kosher salt, to taste

- Fresh ground pepper to taste

- 2-3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

- 2 baguettes (any French bread would work, but the skinny crusty baguette works the best)

First, cut the tomatoes into quarters like so: 

Then, clean out all of the seeds from the tomatoes using a spoon, so that they look like this: 

 

This is everything that came out of the tomatoes: 

After that, press each piece of tomato down and cut it into strips, then cubes.  All of the tomato pieces should be about the same size, like so: 

For basil, a chiffonade works best. To do this, stack fresh basil leaves one on top of the other until you get several leaves. Then roll up the leaves. Slice very thin slices off of the little roll of leaves. You will get a very thin shredded look to the basil without bruising the leaves. Mince the thyme and oregano as well as the garlic.  

Combine tomatoes, chopped garlic, herbs, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar in a glass or plastic bowl. Mix well and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the bruschetta mixture is cooling, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice baguettes on the diagonal in thin slices. Drizzle the slices with olive oil and bake the bread in the oven for about 10 minutes or until toasted. After the bruschetta has cooled and the bread is toasted, top a little bit of the bruschetta mixture on each slice of bread. 

The final product will look like this: 

Enjoy!!

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

Printable Version of Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting Recipe

This is my birthday specialty.  This weekend I baked this delicious cake for my dad's 66th birthday! Happy Birthday, Pop! I got this recipe from Ina Garten, it's called Beatty's Chocolate Cake, however I adjusted the ingredients slightly and also changed the frosting to a healthier alternative.  Enjoy! 

Cake Ingredients:

- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

- 2 cup sugar 

- 3/4 cup good cocoa powder (I like Ghiradelli Sweet Ground Chocolate and Cocoa) 

- 2 tsp baking soda 

- 1 tsp baking powder 

- 1 tsp kosher salt 

- 1 cup McArthur Cultured Lowfat buttermilk, shaken 

- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (I like Mazola)

- 2 extra-large eggs, at room temp 

- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract (I recommend Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Vanilla Extract) 

- 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee (or espresso if you prefer!)

- Pam for Baking with Flour

Frosting Ingredients: 

- 4 cup sifted powdered sugar

- 1/2 cup of 1% or skim milk

- 2 tsp vanilla

- 1/3 cup creamy organic peanut butter (I like Publix)

To make the cake: 

Preheat the oven to 350° F. 

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  

Combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet. With mixer still on low, add the coffee/espresso and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a spatula. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Take the cakes out of the pan immediately, turning them over onto a cooling rack.  Let them cool there completely. 

To make the frosting: 

Beat peanut butter in a mixing bowl until it is fluffy. Add 2 cup of the powdered sugar gradually, beating constantly. Add 1/4 cup of milk and the vanilla; slowly beat them in. Slowly beat in the rest of the powdered sugar and another 1/4 of milk. If necessary, add a little more milk if frosting is not spreadable. Sorry that I do not have pictures of this!  Tip: Frost the cake right away, it will harden and not be smooth enough to spread.  Also, wetting the knife will also help spread if the frosting hardens.  

To frost the cake: 

Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake. 

Please leave a comment if you end up making this delicious cake! Thanks! 

Peanut Butter Brownies

Printable Version of Peanut Butter Brownies Recipe

I love brownies!!!  I especially love peanut butter brownies.  These brownies only have raw sugar and brown sugar, no butter or any other unhealthy fats, and I have even made them with wheat flour.  They are healthy and delicious.  Try them! 

Ingredients: 

- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (or whole wheat flour) 

- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 

- 1/2 tsp kosher salt 

- 1 cup raw sugar 

- 3/4 cup brown sugar 

- 2 eggs 

- 2 egg whites 

- 3 Tbsp applesauce 

- 1/3 cup canola oil (I like Mazola) 

- 1 cup natural creamy peanut butter (I like Publix's brand)

- 7 Tbsp cocoa powder (I like Ghiradelli) 

- Non-stick spray (Pam Original is what I use)

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and brown sugar together in one bowl.  I usually use a strainer in order to remove all of the clumps from the dry ingredients.  The final product will be nice and smooth like so:  

Using a standing mixer, like my BLACK THUNDER, or a handheld mixer, mix the eggs, egg whites, applesauce, and canola oil in another bowl.  Make sure to scrape the bowl periodically to ensure that everything mixes together well. Add the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, and sugars) to the wet ingredients and mix some more.  

Mix in the peanut butter. Tip: Spray the measuring cup with Pam so that the peanut butter slides right out. 

Scrape the sides of the bowl,add the cocoa powder and mix some more until all the ingredients are completely incorporated.  

Spray a 13x9 inch pan or whatever that you have that is closest to that size. Pour the brownie batter into the pan and even it out with a spoon.  The batter will be thick so it may take a little work to get it all out of the bowl. 

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until you can stick a toothpick in the batter and it comes out clean or almost clean (you do not want to burn the brownies). After they are cooked they will look like this: 

Let the brownies cool completely before you cut them.  Store them in an airtight container and enjoy your healthy, tasty, low fat brownies! 

Please let me know how they taste if you make them! 

Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs

Printable Version of Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs Recipe

Turkey meatballs is one of Andrew and I's favorite meals.  They are so delicious! We usually eat them the next day with bread, making them into a meatball sub - mmmm.  For this recipe I have listed some specific ingredients that I think are important.  Sometimes when you cook low fat meals, you really need to use the best ingredients in order to make up for the fact that it's low fat.  Also, Jenny-O turkey is the best ground turkey and make sure you get the Extra-Lean one.  Turkey that is regular fat is basically the same as ground beef.  

Ingredients:

1 small onion, grated 

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves 

1 large egg 

3 Tbsp ketchup 

3 garlic cloves, minced 

1 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp ground black pepper 

1 cup Ians Italian Stye Panko Bread Crumbs 

1 pound Jenny-O Extra Lean Ground Turkey 

1/3 cup extra-virgin Spanish olive oil (I like Carbonell) 

1 34 ounce jar of Classico Tomato and Basil Sauce 

1 box of Ronzoni Smart Taste Spaghetti (This is the best healthy spaghetti!!) 

To make the meatballs, mix the first 7 ingredients in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the bread crumbs. 

Fold in the ground turkey using a fork, not your hands (they will be too dense). 

Shape the meat into meatballs with your hands, they should be about the size of golf balls.  

Heat the olive oil in heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat. Working in 2 to 3 batches, add the meatballs and sauté until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meatballs to a plate. Pour off any excess oil and turkey remnants. Return all the meatballs to the pan. Add the marinara sauce. Simmer over medium-low until the sauce thickens slightly and the flavors blend, about 10 minutes. Begin cooking the spaghetti in salted boiling water. Once the 10 minutes pass, check one of the meatballs to make sure its cooked all the way through.  

Add the sauce and meatballs to the spaghetti.  Your final meal will look like this! 

Enjoy! 

Requests Taken!

Do you have a recipe that you would like me to adjust and try to make healthier? Leave a comment with your request and I will do my very best to adjust the recipe. I am always looking for new recipes to adapt!

Baked Buffalo Chicken Strips

Printable Version of Baked Buffalo Chicken Tenders Recipe

This is one of my absolute FAVORITE recipes.  I find it pretty simple to make and it's very tasty for dinner or to bring to a party. Last year I brought them to a SuperBowl party and they were a hit! Of course, they are very low fat as well, so no guilt over having some "chicken wings". :) 

Ingredients: 

- 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breast, cut into small strips

- 1/2 cup of Hooters Wing Breading (or regular flour with a little salt and pepper)

- 2 egg whites and a little bit of water 

- 1 sleeve of crushed Fat Free Saltines

- 1 bottle of Footy's Wing Sauce 

- Pam to oil the baking sheets

- Celery sticks for snacking

For the sauce:

- 1 container of President Fat Free Feta Cheese Crumbles

- 4 TBLSP Hidden Valley Low Fat Ranch/Fat Free Ranch 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 

Cut the chicken breasts into bite size strips. 

Crush the whole sleeve of saltines using a food processor or a plastic bag and mallet.  I don't like them too finely crushed because then they don't have the consistency of chicken wings.  After you crush your saltines, make your assembly line of chicken, Hooters Wing Breading/flour, egg whites and a little bit of water, and the saltines.  

Coat the chicken with the flour first, then dip in egg white/water solution, then in the crackers. Make sure that the chicken is completely coated in the saltine crumbs. I recommend that you only use one hand to do this, otherwise you will have a complete mess. Line up all the chicken strips on a greased baking sheet. 

Cook for 20 minutes in the oven, turning over once.  They will look like this when they are finished cooking: 

Cut one of the fattest pieces of chickens to make sure that they are all cooked through, then put all of the pieces of chicken in a bowl and toss with the entire bottle of Footy's Wing Sauce or your favorite wing sauce.  

While the chicken is baking, put 4 tablespoons of ranch dressing and 4 tablespoons of fat free feta cheese crumbles in a container.  Mix well and put the sauce into the refrigerator to cool until the chicken is done baking. Cut up the celery and ENJOY!

Your finished meal will look like this: