Not So Bad For You, But Super Tasty, Vegan Brownies

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I went through a phase a couple months ago where I was making these vegan brownies from the Peas and Thank You cookbook just about every single day.  Yes, they were that good, and yes, they are low-fat enough where I could make them a lot.  I hadn't made them in a while, so I decided to make them tonight :)

Now let me set your expectations.  These are not going to be super ooey gooey brownies.  If you find a recipe that produces that kind of brownie with no oil or sugar, please let me know.  These brownies are going to be kind of fluffly, but there are a couple tricks I use to make sure they are super moist, uber chocolatey, a still pretty fudgy.

The original recipe calls for sugar, but I can't really have sugar, so I use agave nectar.  I have also been amazed by how far sugar free chocolate has come.  I didn't use sugar free chocolate in this recipe because my nephew ate my last bar, but using sugar free chocolate would also be super good and would decrease the calories by a good amount as well.

So here is the recipe:

3/4 c. whole wheat pastry or white whole wheat flour
1/3 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 c. unsweetened applesauce (I recommend making your own, it is very easy.)
3/8 c. agave nectar
1 t. vanilla extract
1/2 c. dark chocolate chips (or sugar free chocolate chopped)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray an 8x8 inch baking dish with cooking spray.  In a large mixing bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients together (except chocolate chips).  Add in all of the wet ingredients and stir until well combined.  Add in the chocolate chips and stir until well incorporated.

Pour the ingredients into the baking dish and back for 18-20 mins until the edges start to pull away from the pan.

Now here is the trick to keeping the brownies moist.  Pull the brownies out of the oven and onto a cooling rack.  Cover brownies with aluminum foil, this traps in the moisture as they cool down.  Let the brownies cool to room temperature then slice into 2x4 inch brownies.

You can substitute 1 c. of mashed bananas for the applesauce to make banana brownies which are also very tasty.

Quick Tip: If they make it to the next day, I heat my brownie in the microwave for 10 seconds to melt the chocolate chips before devouring :)

So yeah, they get a c- score on nutrition. But they are a dessert :) and 3.1 grams of dietary fiber is not too shabby. Especially since you can't even tell that they are made from whole wheat flour. These are the nutrition facts for using regular chocolate. I wonder what they would look like with the sugar-free chocolate. hmmmmm......

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Five Ingredient Butternut Squash Soup

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Tonight I was faced with the question every person dreads.  What should I make tonight for dinner?  At least I dread it because asking myself this question means that I didn't plan a meal and now I have to come up with one on the fly using stuff I already have in the kitchen.  So in my search for inspiration, I came across some butternut squash that had been sitting in the fridge for a while and needed to be used.  "Liiiiightbulb", I said to myself.  I remembered that I had read some research on PCOS and found that reducing meat consumption is a good thing.  So yeah! Go me for listening!

I have never made butternut squash soup before and I was too lazy to look for a recipe online, so I decided to wing it.  Here is what I got:

1 large yellow onion, large dice
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 T. olive oil
64 ounces of butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
8 c. low-sodium vegetable stock
Salt and pepper

Heat a large pot on medium-high, add the olive oil and onions and cook until onions are translucent.  Add the garlic and cook until you can smell it.

Next, add in the butternut squash and vegetable stock and allow to simmer until squash is tender.

Now comes the fun part.  You can puree the soup in a couple of ways.  You could blend is in a blender, or run it through a food processor, orrrrrr you can bust out the fancy immersion blender your husband bought you for Christmas.  I chose to bust out my new immersion blender because I hate dirtying stuff if I don't need to aaaand I wanted to show my husband how much I loved his gift.

Using the immersion blender also allows me to puree the soup in the pot and then salt and pepper to taste.  If I were to use a blender or food processor, I would have to season each batch separately.  Not fun.

The result is a naturally creamy, nutrient packed soup that is only 73 calories per serving.  Whhhhhaaaat!?!  Yes that's right, only 73 calories.  And in each bowl, you get 100% of the vitamin C you need in a day.  Plus loads of other beneficial nutrients.  You can check them all out here.  And did I mention that it tastes awesome and is basically the easiest soup in the world to make.  You seriously can't go wrong here. Pin It

Avocado Chicken A.K.A Party In My Mouth Sandwich

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Martha Stewart puts out a killer food magazine.  The best part is that she includes the calorie count for all the recipes in said magazine.  So I was reading through this month's issue and came across a recipe for an avocado chicken sandwich.  This is nothing like her recipe, but I did feel inspired to make my own version and it tasted a-mazing.  I made it again for my brother-in-law and he agreed.  So now I am going to share this awesomeness with the world:

1 avocado, cut in half, pit removed

2 T. greek yogurt

1/2 lemon, juiced
salt and pepper
1 chicken breast cooked and shredded
1 green onion, sliced thin using only the white and light-green part
1 stalk of celery, small dice
alfalfa sprouts
4 slices multi-grain bread toasted

Take half of the avocado and smash it up in a small bowl, add the greek yogurt, lemon juice, salt and pepper and mix all together.

Take the other half of the avocado and cut it into cubes then add to bowl of mixture.  Add in the chicken, green onion, celery.  Mix everything together and spoon on top of bread slices.  Add the alfalfa sprouts on top to make open-faced sandwiches.  Makes four good sized servings at about 261 calories each and goes really well with vegetable soup :)

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Spinach Omelet, You Say?

Lately, I have been getting a little sick of my typical breakfast food items.  Sometimes oatmeal just doesn't cut it for me.  So I had eggs and spinach in my refrigerator and I said to myself, "Self, you should tots (pronounced "totes" as in totally) make a spinach omelet for breakfast!"  So I did:

1 egg plus 2 egg whites beaten
1 big handful of fresh spinach
2 T. red onion, small dice
1/4 c. greek yogurt
salt and pepper

1 heat resistant rubber spatula

Heat a 6-inch non-stick pan on medium-high heat.  Spray in some cooking spray and sauté onion until translucent.  Rinse the spinach and place it in a microwave safe bowl.  Heat on high for 30 seconds, take it out of the microwave, and allow to cool.  Once the spinach is cool, squeeze out all the water.

Turn the heat down to medium-low and add eggs.  Using the tip of the spatula, pull in the sides of the omelet slightly and and tip the pan so that the runny part of the egg fills in the gap made by the spatula.  Work your This will make your omelet fluffy and will also help to cook faster.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

Once the omelet is no longer runny on top, add the spinach and flip in half.  Cook on each side until the inside of the omelet is fully cooked.  About a minute before cooking is complete, spread the yogurt on top of the omelet to warm up a little bit.

And that's it.  Super tasty omelet action and only 170 calories, yes!!!!!

Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread

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After about a month of....testing? I finally produced a good bread from my mother starter.  I kept trying to do the "purist" versions of the breads and it just wasn't working out for me, so I broke down and added some yeast and let the bread sit in the refrigerator for 3 days to let it mature and have a nice sour flavor.  I was so stoked when I tasted this bread because it is 100% whole wheat and tastes really really good.  So here is the recipe, keep in mind it does require a lot of patience because it takes almost two weeks to make it.  But once you get the system down, you can refrigerate batches to have at the ready and even freeze it.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Starter Ingredients:
2 oz. (1/4 c.) of mother starter (see previous starter recipe)
6 oz. (1 1/2 c.)whole wheat flour
4.5 oz. (1/2 c. plus 1 T.) warm water

Wheat Wheat Sourdough Ingredients:
sourdough starter (above)
1 oz. (1 1/2 T.) honey
12 oz. (1 1/2 c.) warm water
1/2 oz (2 T.) oil
10 oz. (3 1/2 c.) whole wheat flour
1/2 oz. (2 t.) salt
1 1/2 t. yeast

Mixing the starter:
On a clean surface, make a crater of the whole wheat flour.  Take the mother starter and break it up into a couple pieces, place pieces in the crater.  Add some of the water to the crater making sure it doesn't overflow.  Soften the mother starter pieces in the warm water by mixing gently with your fingers.

Begin bringing in the flour from the sides of the crater and slowly add in the rest of the water.  Until all the ingredients are mixed into a slightly sticky ball.

Place the starter ball into a clean, lightly oiled container, cover loosely with saran wrap, and leave the starter out to ferment for 6 to 8 hours until 1 1/2 times original size.  You can then either use the starter immediately or place it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.  I let it ferment in the refrigerator to build more sour flavor.

Making the dough:
Pull the starter into a bunch of pieces (10-12) and places them into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment.  Add the warm water, honey, and oil to the bowl and stir on low speed to soften. Next add in the flour, salt and yeast and mix until all ingredients are combined and form a crumbly dough.  Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, turn the mixer to medium-low speed for 5 more minutes.  The dough should be slightly sticky and supple.  If the dough it too dry, add in a little water.

Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and fold it onto itself starting back to front, front to back, and then the sides.  Form into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl for 10 mins.  Repeat the folding process three more times for a total of four times.  After the last fold, form the dough back into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl.  Cover the bowl tightly with saran wrap and refrigerate for up to four days (at least 8-10 hours).

Pull the dough out f the refrigerator at least 4 hours before baking.  Shape the dough into a loaf and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan.  Spray dough lightly with oil, and cover to let rise.  Uncover dough about 15 minutes before baking and score with a knife.

About 30 mins before baking, place a deep metal pan into the very bottom rack of the oven, place the top rack in the middle positions, and turn the oven to 500 degrees.  Just before baking, pour 1 cup of water into the meta pan on the bottom rack and place the sheet pan with the dough on the top rack.  Bake for 35-45 mins until the dough reaches an internal temperature of 195 degrees and sounds hollow.



Let bread cool on a wire rack for at least one hour before slicing (preferably 3 hours).  I snuck in a taste as I was taking the photos and oh wow!  This is good sourdough bread.

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So What If I'm Too Cheap To Run The Heater Vegetable Soup

One of the things that I am known for is being super stingy about running the heater in the winter (and the air conditioner in the summer).  The only three exceptions are if company is coming over, if I am trying to make bread rise (yes, our house gets cold enough to prevent bread from rising), or if I can see my breath in the house.  With that in mind, I try my best to make other things perform double duty to help keep warm.  Things like waiting to do the laundry until the coldest part of the day, or baking more meals, or eating tasty soup :)

Soup is easy, quick, filling, and healthy (as long as it isn't loaded with sodium).  The soup I made for dinner last night was all of those things plus an added bonus of tasting amazing.

Ingredients:

1 T. Olive Oil

2 medium carrots (small dice)

2 stalks of celery (small dice)

1 medium yellow onion (small dice)

3 garlic cloves (minced)

1 t. dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste

2 15oz. cans of cannelli beans (rinsed and drained)

1 28 oz. cans diced tomatoes

4 c. low-sodium vegetable stock

1/4 c. fresh parsley (chopped)

grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

Heat olive oil a large pot on medium-high heat.  Add in the carrots, celery, and onions.  Cook until onions are translucent.  Add in the garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and cook until you can smell the garlic.  Add in the rest of the ingredients (beans, tomatoes, stock, parsley) and bring the soup to a boil then turn to low and simmer until vegetables are tender (20-25 mins). Serve the soup with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top.  Makes four servings at 300 calories each.

Other ingredients that would taste good:

Kale (added in with tomatoes)

Spinach (added in the last couple of minutes of simmering)

Garbanzo beans (in place of cannelli beans)

Zucchini (added in with garlic)

Potatoes (added in with carrots)

The best part is that it takes less than an hour to make :)

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OMG These Are Soooo Good Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I have been mainly focussing my recipes on healthier food lately.  But I have to be honest and say that my husband and I do not eat uber healthy all of the time.  I wish I could say that, but we really just don't have the will power.  So we have instituted something called "Cheat Day".  This glorious day is what keeps our healthy eating habits alive.  One day a week we go a little crazy and then it is back on the bandwagon by Monday, in theory.  In actual practice, sometimes cheat day spills over into Monday.  This week has been a double-cheat week and with good reason:

OMG These Are Soooo Good Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sunday night at 11:30 pm my husband turns to me and says "I want some cookies!".  He knows that cheat day is about to end and he wants to squeeze in one last cheat.  Cookies sounded good to me so I obliged.  After a little bit of research, I came across what is in my apparently not so humble opinion, the world's best chocolate chip cookie recipe thanks to America's Test Kitchen.  I made it again last night for my friends and the response from them was "Oh My Gah.....! These are so good!".  So with two stamps of approval (we made them two nights in a row) I decided to post this not so healthy, but good for the soul recipe.  The ingredients are the same as any old recipe, but the ratios and execution make all the difference.



Ingredients:
2 c. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
12 T. unsalted butter (melted and cooled slightly)
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 t. vanilla
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips



Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and place the oven racks in upper-middle and lower middle positions and line two cookie sheets with parchment.  Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, mix butter and sugars on med-low speed until well blended. Turn the mixer down to low and add in the eggs and vanilla until they are roughly combined and then turn the mixer up to medium until well combined.  Turn the mixer to low again and add in the dry ingredients.  Once the dry ingredients are incorporated, add the chocolate chips until they are well dispersed in the dough (about 10-15 seconds).

Now these cookies are big!  I describe them as "Brian Size" appropriately named for my friend Brian who esteems quantity just as important as quality in his food.  So keep this in mind for the next step.

Click to enlarge ;)

Take a 1/4 c. of dough and roll it into a ball.  Then pull the ball into two equal pieces to create two balls with one side of rough surface.  Bring the balls back together, rough sides facing up to make one big cookie again.  Make sure that you do not compromise the structural integrity of the rough parts when you bring the dough back together.  The purpose of this step is to create a nice crumbly surface on the cookie, do not skip this step, it is so worth it.  These cookies put Mrs. Fields AND Pepperidge Farms to absolute shame.

Place dough balls on cookie sheets and give them plenty of space, at least 2 1/2 inches apart.

Bake until the cookies are lightly browned and the edges are a little crispy (about 15 minutes for gas ovens and 18 minutes for my jenky electric oven).  Switch and rotate the baking sheets half way through.

Now when these beauties come out of the oven, you will be tempted to eat them right away because they are soooo pretty.  You will also be tempted to put them on a cooling rack.  Don't do either of those things.  Take the cookie sheets out, place them on a heat-safe surface and leave them alone for as long as you can stand it  or 10-15 mins.

Good luck!  and feel free to post comments or questions if you have them.  For all my Church friends, I am bringing these to the Relief Society activity tonight so you can try before you buy :)

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