Healthy Banana Bread
⅓ C melted coconut oil, ½ C honey or maple syrup, 2 eggs, about 2 ½ medium or 2 large bananas, ¼ C milk of choice or water, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp vanilla extract, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, 1 ¾ C whole wheat flour, optional: ½ C mix-ins like chopped walnuts or pecans, chocolate chips, raisins, chopped dried fruit, fresh banana slices…
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, beat the oil and honey together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well, then whisk in the mashed bananas and milk.
Add the baking soda, vanilla, salt and cinnamon, and whisk to blend. Lastly, switch to a big spoon and stir in the flour, just until combined. If you’re adding any additional mix-ins, gently fold them in now.
Pour the batter into your greased loaf pan and sprinkle lightly with a little more cinnamon.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the loaf pan for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes before slicing.
Chocolate Banana Bread
1 C all-purpose flour ( I used whole wheat and it turned out just fine)!, 1/2 C cocoa, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 3 large brown bananas, 1/4 C unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled, 1/4 C melted coconut oil, 3/4 C packed light brown sugar, 1 large egg, 1 tsp pure vanilla extract, 1 C dark chocolate chips (or any other add ins you'd like)
Heat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas. Add the melted butter and oil and stir until combined. Stir in the brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.
Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, don’t overmix. Stir in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over the top of the bread. Bake for 50-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out mostly clean. Check at 50 minutes, just to be safe.
Remove the pan from the oven and set on a wire cooling rack. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack until slightly warm.
Carrot- Banana Muffins - one of my all time favorites:) (recipe passed down from my momma)
2 C almond flour, 2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tbs ground cinnamon, 1/2 C unsweetened shredded coconut, 3 large eggs, 3 bananas mashed, 1/2 C (8 tbs) unsalted butter, cubed and softened, 2 tbs honey, 1 tsp apple cider vinegar, 1 1/4 C pitted/ chopped dates, 2 medium carrots shredded (I usually just buy the shredded carrots and do a cup or two), 3/4 C chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 325. Lightly oil a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper lines. In large bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and coconut. In another bowl, whisk eggs, bananas, butter, honey, and vinegar. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ones. Fold in the dates, carrots, walnuts. Divide batter among tins and bake for 40 min until golden brown or toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the pan or on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes. Yum, enjoy!
Pecan Crusted Salmon
4 wild salmon fillets, 1/2 C toasted, very finely chopped pecans, 1/2 C panko breadcrumbs, 1/4 C olive oil, 1 tbs finely chopped parsley, 1 tbs butter, 1 large pinch of salt,
Melt butter in a medium skillet. Add pecans, panko, parsley and salt and stir to combine. Set aside. Wash the salmon and remove scales from the skin. Make 3 small cuts across the skin side to prevent the skin from shrinking when it cooks. Dry salmon thoroughly. Season the skin with salt and pepper. Working with the salmon skin side down, mound the pecan mixture evenly across each piece. Drizzle olive oil over the pecan mixture on the salmon and press firmly on the mixture so that it has good contact with the salmon. Heat a splash of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. When the oil is hot, add the salmon, pecan crust side down. Cook for 2 minutes or until the pecan crust has browned. Flip the salmon over and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, or until it light pink and flakes easily. Be careful not to overcook the salmon or it will become tough and chewy.
Baked Honey Cilantro Lime Salmon in foil
1 large salmon fillet (see note), salt and pepper, to taste, ½ C melted butter, juice of 2 limes (plus one lime, thinly sliced), 4 tbs honey, 3 tsp minced garlic, ⅓ C cilantro, roughly chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line and grease a large baking sheet with foil. Lay salmon on foil and season with salt and pepper on both sides to taste. Slip lime slices underneath the salmon.
Stir together butter, lime juice, honey, and garlic. Pour mixture over salmon. Fold sides of foil up over the salmon (don't worry if it doesn't cover the salmon completely).
Bake for 15-20 minutes. Switch oven to broil and cook another 5 minutes. Sprinkle chopped cilantro over the top and serve.
Sriracha Chicken Quesadillas- ( Such a quick and yummy meal)
2 C shredded rotisserie chicken ( I usually use canned chicken just because it's in my pantry most the time), 1/3 C Sriracha, 2 tbs sour cream ( I do half plain greek yogurt, half sour cream), plus more for dipping, 2 C shredded cheese, 4 tsp canola oil, 4 10-inch flour tortillas ( I use whole wheat), ¼ cup chopped cilantro leaves ( if I don't have these I don't use them and they still taste great!
In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, sriracha, sour cream, and cheese. Heat 1 tsp canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then lay a tortilla down in the skillet. Spoon ¼ of the chicken/cheese mixture on just half of the tortilla in the skillet. Sprinkle a tablespoon of chopped cilantro leaves on top, then fold the tortilla in half. Cook until the underside is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip the quesadilla and cook until both sides are lightly browned and the cheese is melted, about 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining 3 tortillas. To serve, cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges. Serve with sour cream/ salsa, for dipping.
4 Ingredient Chicken Marinade
4/5 chicken breasts. 1 C brown sugar, 1 C oil, ½ C soy sauce, ½ C vinegar
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl or a ziplock bag. Place the boneless skinless chicken breasts in the marinade. Marinade chicken for at least 1 hour or overnight. Grill or pop in the oven at 425 for 20-23 min.
Taco Twist Soup
1 pound ground beef, 2 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 3/4 C Campbell's® Condensed Chicken Broth, 1 C Pace Picante Sauce, 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained, 1 C uncooked rotini (spiral) pasta, 1/4 C sour cream (optional)
Cook the beef, chili powder and cumin in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until the beef is well browned, stirring often to break up the meat. Pour off any fat. Add the broth, picante sauce and tomatoes. Heat to a boil. Stir in the pasta. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes or until done, stirring occasionally. Garnish with sour cream (greek yogurt), if desired. I like to add a little shredded cheese to the top too...and I dip chips in it!
Easy oven roasted potatoes
6 small red potatoes, 1/4 C olive oil, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp onion powder
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Clean and cut the potatoes into 1/2"-1" cubes. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with the oil and spices. Spray a shallow baking pan with cooking spray and place potatoes in the bottom. Bake at 450 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Stir the potatoes after about 15 minutes of baking so they brown on all sides. I sometimes broil them for a minute or two at the end to make them crispier. Serve and enjoy!
Best Brussels Sprouts (I have been making these like crazy lately. They are so yummy and such a perfect side dish for any meal)
1 lb Brussels sprouts, 1 tbsp unsalted butter, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tbsp honey ( I really do just eyeball the amounts of mustard and honey, Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
Over medium high heat, melt butter and olive oil in large nonstick pan. Add brussels sprouts, toss to mix and add a sprinkle of kosher salt. Cook and stir until brown and crisp-tender. Stir in mustard and honey until well combined and caramelized, a minute or two. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
Greek yogurt dip
This dip is so simple and I actually got the recipe from my older brother (he's always playing around with different foods). I usually just eyeball this recipe. I mix a spoonful of plain greek yogurt (or more if you have people over for a get together) with a little bit of Franks hot sauce and TA DA! Super simple. I sometimes add a little sprinkle from the Hidden Valley Greek yogurt ranch packet too! It's such a simple dip that tastes amazing with pretzels, veggies, or crackers.
xoxo,
MRS T
