Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie


I was walking by a Jugo Juice the other day. Each month they have a featured smoothie flavour. This month it is Chocolate Peanut Butter! 
Yes, Please!

I decided to try making one at home, it turned out perfectly! It was so creamy with lots of chocolate and peanut butter flavour.

What you need,

1 cup low fat frozen yogurt (I love Chapman's, it is so good! Get if you can!)
1 banana, I used a frozen one
2 tbsp. peanut butter (I used regular old Kraft)
½ cup Chocolate Almond Milk - you can get it in the milk section of your dairy case.  You could use regular old chocolate milk but I was trying it out, it is very good by the way!)

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth and creamy.
Add another splash of the chocolate almond milk if you need to thin it out a bit.

Pour into a big glass get yourself a straw and enjoy!


I would love to have one of these for breakfast every day, but sadly I like sleeping more than making breakfast so I will just have to go without, except on weekends!

Jen

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Pulled Barbeque Chicken Sandwiches with Fresh Cabbage Slaw


Ok people are you ready for a knock your socks off super easy and ridiculously tasty recipe!


These easy pulled barbeque chicken sandwiches with fresh cabbage slaw are crazy good. I know it sounds like a lot of work but I figured out a way to turn it into a weeknight meal, 45 minutes start to finish!

I got the idea from Pioneer Woman; she posted a pulled chicken recipe a few weeks ago that made me drool. I wanted to make it but it seemed like such a long process, so I cheated a bit!


What you need,

For the Slaw,

½ head of green cabbage, shredded or cut thinly
½ head of purple cabbage, shredded or cut thinly
3 green onions, chopped
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
½ cup Greek yogurt
½ cup mayo
1 tsp. white vinegar
1 tbsp. sugar
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
¼ tsp. celery salt
Salt and pepper to taste

In a small bowl combine the yogurt and mayo. Add in the vinegar, sugar, cayenne pepper, celery salt and salt and pepper to taste. You can add a few teaspoons of milk to thin out the dressing if you feel like it is too thick.

Stir everything to combine and adjust the seasoning to you taste.

In a large bowl combine the green and purple cabbage and the green onion. Spoon the dressing over the cabbage mixture and stir to coat. I used just enough dressing to coat but not drown it; I used about ¾ of the dressing I made.

Let the slaw sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes while you make the sauce or if you have time 2 hours. Stir in the parsley right before serving.

For the chicken,

1 deli rotisserie chicken (you know the pre-cooked ones!)
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, grated or diced very fine
1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (I used Tony Roma’s Carolina Honey)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tbsp. brown sugar
¼-1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes, to your taste
4-6 soft Hamburger buns
2 tbsp. of butter

Heat the oil in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat. Add in the onion and sauté for a minute or 2 until it begins to soften and turn translucent. Add in the garlic and cook 1 minute more until it is fragrant.

Pour in the bottle of barbeque sauce and stir to combine. Stir in the red wine vinegar, brown sugar and red pepper flakes. Bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer until mixture thickens a little and reduces by about a third.

In the meantime remove all the meat from the rotisserie chicken and shred it with a fork.

Add the shredded chicken to the sauce and stir to coat. Allow the chicken to warm up slowly, about 10 minutes.

Cut the hamburger buns and butter the inside. Heat a large pan over medium high heat and toast the buns buttered side down for 1-2 minutes until warmed and crisp.

To assemble, pile some of the shredded saucy chicken on the bottom of the toasted bun, top with a good spoonful of the slaw and put the toasted bun top on.


Get yourself a handful of napkins, you are gonna need them.

My in house taste tester and I couldn’t even speak to each other while we were eating; we were too busy shoving this tasty meal into our faces. 

After we were finished and the BBQ sauce was wiped off our chins we looked at each other and he said, that was one of the best meals you have ever made!
I agree fully!

Jen

Recipe inspiration Pioneer Woman

Friday, May 25, 2012

Ice Cream Sandwiches


Remember those amazing Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies I made the other day?
Well I got an idea, why not stuff some vanilla ice cream in between 2 of them and then stuff that into my face.


So I did… 


AH-MAZING!!


GAAA!! I think I am in trouble.
Happy Friday Everyone!

Jen

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Berries with Mint and Lime on Greek Yogurt


I was looking for a snack the other day. I was staring into the fridge hoping that something would just appear. Then I remembered I had fresh strawberries and raspberries just waiting to be eaten.


I whipped up a healthy little parfait of marinated berries, Greek yogurt and toasted almonds.
It was delicious a perfect snack.


What you need,

1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
1 cup fresh raspberries
½ lime, juiced
2 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped
1 tbsp. superfine sugar
2 tbsp. toasted almonds, or pistachios would be great too
Drizzle of honey (optional)
½ cup Greek yogurt

In a bowl mix together the fresh berries, lime juice, sugar and mint. Set aside for 15-20 minutes just to let the flavours come together.

In a serving bowl scoop the Greek yogurt, drizzle with a little honey. Spoon the berry mixture over the top. Sprinkle on the toasted almonds.


That is it, a perfectly healthy snack. I think you could use whatever berries you like, blueberries or blackberries would be great.

Happy snacking!

Jen

Monday, May 21, 2012

Kale Salad with Avocado, Almonds and Oranges


Do you ever have one of those weeks where you just feel like all you have done is eat? 
I have those often! Oops! 


As soon as I saw this recipe on Eat Live Run I knew it would be the perfect salad to sort of detox a week of binge eating.

I have never eaten Kale raw before, I was surprised at how good it was. I love that it stays crispy and tender for a few days even when covered in dressing.


What you need,

1 bunch of Kale, washed and chopped
2 oranges
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 avocado, chopped
2 tbsp. sliced almonds, toasted
Salt and Pepper to taste

Start by making the dressing. Whisk together the juice of one of the oranges with the olive oil, season with salt and pepper.

To assemble the salad segment the other orange and chop into bite size pieces.

Toss in a large bowl with the Kale, avocado and almonds. Pour on about ½ the dressing and toss to coat, add more dressing if you need it.

Season the salad with additional salt and pepper if needed.

I let mine sit for about 30 minutes before serving; this allowed the dressing to soften the kale a little bit.


I took the left overs for lunch for the next 2 days and it was just as tasty on day 3 as it was the first day!

It was healthy and fresh. I felt so much better after eating this salad. Give it a try, you will love it.


Jen

Recipe from Eat Live Run