Banana Bars (Grain-Free)

I’ve been revisiting some of my old posts recently to see if I can make any minor improvements. This is a rather fun job for me as it involves a lot of taste testing! Plus, it’s a bit of a trip down memory lane (Hello, May 2012!). Good lord, how embarrassing some of my posts are…

While scrolling along, I came across my Carrot Bar recipe, which immediately made me start thinking of possible variations. The result? Banana bars!

Banana Bars

Ingredients: 

1 cup mashed banana (about 3 bananas)

3/4 cup plain yogurt

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup honey

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 tbsp flaxseed

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup coconut flour

Optional: 1/4 cup coconut flakes

Optional: 1/4 cup chocolate chips

Optional: 1/4 cup chopped almonds

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13×9 baking dish.

Combine all ingredients (except chocolate chips and almonds) in a food processor and blend until a thick batter is formed. Stir in chocolate chips and almonds, if using. Spread batter in the baking dish and bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before cutting and eating.

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“Zombie Brain” (AKA: Whole-Roasted and Spiced Cauliflower)

Everyone knows what tomorrow is! Valentines Day? Ummm, sure? But let’s set aside the fake holiday and talk Walking Dead!

This year we’re having a “Bloody Valentines Day” Party to kick off the start of Walking Dead again. My dad wasn’t too enthusiastic about this until I suggested we make ribs for dinner. Now he’s on board. And I’m making a cauliflower brain fit for zombie consumption. In case, anyone else is as crazy as I am, see the recipe below!

For all non-Walking Dead fans, feel free to make this and call it “whole-roasted and spiced cauliflower” 😉 

So yes, tomorrow will look more like a repeat of Halloween than Valentines Day at my house. Sorry, Walking Dead takes higher priority.

Ingredients:

1 cup plain, whole milk yogurt

2 tbsp avocado oil

1 and 1/2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp garlic powder

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne

1 cauliflower, leaves and protruding stem removed

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Set aside. Place cauliflower on top.

In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, oil, and spices. Mix together.

With a spoon, “paint” the cauliflower until entirely and thickly covered with the yogurt mixture. Reserve leftover yogurt mixture. Place in the oven to bake for 30 minutes. Afterward, allow to cool for 15 minutes before cutting. Use reserved leftover yogurt as a dipping sauce. 

Frozen Yogurt Sandwiches

Two more days until the unofficial start of fall! Just enough time for one more summer recipe.

Ahhh heck. Who am I kidding? I eat this in the dead of winter. Can’t beat PB and chocolate 🙂

Frozen Yogurt Sandwiches

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, divided

4 tbsp unsweetened almond milk, divided

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1/4 cup plain, whole milk yogurt

2 and 1/2 tbsp nut butter (almond, peanut…)

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp salt

Directions: 

Cover and mold the bottoms of a mini muffin pan with aluminum foil. Set aside.

Melt 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 2 tbsp almond milk together until smooth. Pour the melted chocolate into the muffin pan, just enough in each hole to cover up the aluminum entirely. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the yogurt, nut butter, vanilla, and salt together. Once the chocolate has frozen, cover it entirely with a glob of yogurt. Freeze again for 15 minutes.

Melt the remaining chocolate chips and almond milk together. Once the yogurt has stiffed, pour chocolate on top and return to freezer. Wait about 30 minutes before popping sandwiches out of muffin tins (using a fork helps). Store in the freezer.

Broccoli and Red Cabbage Cole Slaw

Well, my computer finally came back today!

Pro- I have all my recipes back

Con- My internet problem is still not fixed and I no longer have access to most of my pictures 😦 Ugh, what a mighty headache I now have.

Luckily, I had most of my food pictures tucked away in another file.

Hmmm, maybe third time (at the BestBuy/Apple Store) is a charm?

Anyway, when annoyed, I tend to gravitate towards comfort food. And, as I have mentioned before, cabbage is one of my comfort foods. 

Which means a cole slaw recipe!

I have been making this cole slaw all summer. Usually, I make it on Sundays to eat at dinner and then have it for lunch the entire week.

And no, it never gets old to me 🙂

Broccoli and Red Cabbage Cole Slaw

Ingredients:

2 heads of broccoli, thinly cut

1 small onion, diced

1/2 head of red cabbage, thinly sliced

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1 cup plain whole milk yogurt or sour cream (or a mixture of both!)

3 tbsp white vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp dried mustard

1/16 tsp stevia

Directions:

Combine broccoli, cabbage, and onion in a large serving bowl. In a different bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients to make the dressing. Add and mix in dressing to the broccoli, cabbage, and onion. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Pumpkin-Nut Butter Dip

I have to say, one of the benefits of dual-majoring in education is the many parties we have throughout the semester. After all, teachers need to know how to throw classroom parties! Ummmm, or so our professors tell us…

Well, my one education course is an 8am class.

And surely none of my classmates wanted to eat sugar and chocolate for breakfast, thought me. Wrongly.

And so, Halloween started off with brownies and cupcakes galore (and the little assembly of fruit I provided). Yup, everyone now knows who the health nut in the room is.

So for our Thanksgiving party, I created a more “treat-like” recipe. However, I think this dip is perfectly acceptable for a special occasion breakfast when paired with apple slices.

Luckily, college students make perfect guinea pigs and I got great feedback on this dip. My professor even asked for the recipe. For a second, I thought of giving her a completely messed up recipe- she’s not exactly my favorite teacher- but my professionalism got in the way.

Stupid conscience.

Anyway, thanks to my classmates, I have a final recipe to provide- and just in time for the holidays 🙂

Pumpkin-Nut Butter Dip

Ingredients :

3/4 cup pumpkin

1/2 cup almond butter or peanut butter

1/3 cup plain, whole milk yogurt

1/2 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp allspice

Optional: 1 tbsp pure maple syrup

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients (except maple syrup) in a food processor. Taste and add in the maple syrup if you believe you need more sweetness (sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t- it depends on the brand of nut butter I’m using).