Author: Ashley

Chocolate Butterscotch Caramel Bars

Chocolate Butterscotch Caramel Bars

Are you looking for a sweet and gooey bar dessert?  These are the perfect answer.  I saved this recipe and thought about making it for months.  When I finally made these they disappeared in the blink of an eye. Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: 

Stuffed Shells with Meatballs and Basil Spinach Ricotta

Stuffed Shells with Meatballs and Basil Spinach Ricotta

For my birthday every year I always had stuffed shells growing up.  It was my favorite dish my mom made.  Now I have adapted the recipe a little, but I continue to make this every year for my birthday.  I used eggplant meatballs in this 

Avocado Mochi Blondies 

Avocado Mochi Blondies 

So I bought a few too many avocados and was looking for recipes to help use them up.  I added flavor to these simple blondies by adding butterscotch, vanilla, and peanut butter chips to the top; however, they have a light simple flavor without the enhancements.  If you want a light dessert and you don’t mind the taste of avocado then you will enjoy these blondies.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup quinoa or other rice flour
  • 1/2 cup almond flour 
  • 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup 
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 medium ripe avocado 2/3 cup mashed
  • 1 large egg
  • 1-2 tablespoons butterscotch, vanilla, or peanut butter chips. 

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 and spray a 9 inch cake pan or 8×8 square baking dish with baking spray.
  2. Mix rice flour, almond flour and salt together in a bowl
  3. Add the wet ingredients (mashed ripe avocado, egg and honey) into the bowl
  4. Stir the ingredients together until well incorporated and the batter is smooth.
  5. Pour batter into baking dish.  Use a spatula to smooth. 
  6. Sprinkle chips over the top or arrange in a pattern.
  7. Bake 350F for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  8. Let cool on a wire rack. 
  9. Enjoy!
Zucchini Salad with Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette

Zucchini Salad with Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette

If you are looking for a light salad to pair with a main dish this is a lovely and simple dish. If you have leftover vinaigrette it tastes amazing on salads. Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: 1-2 zucchini cut into ribbons or thin strips 

Grilled Honey Curry Chicken

Grilled Honey Curry Chicken

Honey and curry pair together to make the perfect marinade for this grilled chicken.  I paired this with curry spiced sweet potato and carrot fries and a lemon zucchini ribbon salad. Recipe adapted from 2BMindset Ingredients: 4-6 boneless skinless chicken tenders (or 1-2 large chicken 

Blueberry Clafoutis (Custard Pie)

Blueberry Clafoutis (Custard Pie)

If you are looking for a light and healthy dessert this combines fresh fruit, eggs, and a few other ingredients to make a tasty dish filled with antioxidants and protein.  You can use blueberries, raspberries, peaches, etc…

Recipe adapted from 2BMindset

Ingredients:

10 ounces fresh blueberries (or other fruit)

1 cup almond milk

3 large eggs

½ cup oat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 inch cake pan with baking spray.
  2. Lay fruit in an even layer in the cake pan.
  3. Whisk eggs, almond milk, baking powder, honey, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl.
  4. Add the oat flour.  Whisk until smooth.
  5. Pour egg mixture over the fruit.
  6. Bake 25-30 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the custard is just set.
  7. Let cool at least 30 minutes.
  8. Note: Oat flour can be made by pulsing ¾ cup old fashioned oats in a food processor. 
Caribbean Banana Chicken Curry with Roasted Curry Cauliflower Rice

Caribbean Banana Chicken Curry with Roasted Curry Cauliflower Rice

This is without a doubt one of my favorite recipes from Fixate.  I love the combination of sweet and spicy in this dish.  I usually use frozen cauliflower, but this time I used cauliflower rice made from fresh cauliflower I pulsed in my food processor 

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Pesto and Zoodles

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Pesto and Zoodles

I used homemade pesto, but you can use any store-bought pesto you like to make this dish. This is a light and healthy dinner that can be adapted to suit your cravings.  I used air fried zoodles, but you can use a traditional pasta too. 

Dark Chocolate Espresso Bean Energy Cookie Balls

Dark Chocolate Espresso Bean Energy Cookie Balls

These energy balls are sure to wake you up.  These taste like chocolate chip cookies, but instead of chocolate chips I used dark chocolate espresso beans.  Yum!!

Ingredients:

1 cup old fashioned oats

2 scoops chocolate protein powder

1 tablespoon flax seeds

1/3 cup peanut butter (I used BetterNButter)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

4 large Mejdool dates

¼ cup lite maple syrup

¼ cup dark chocolate espresso beans

Directions:

  1. Add oats, protein powder, flax seeds, and cinnamon to a food processor.  Pulse to mix.
  2. Add dates, vanilla extract, and peanut butter.  Pulse to mix.  Scrape down the sides as needed.
  3. Drizzle the maple syrup around the food processor before you pulse.  Pulse to mix.  Add more peanut butter or maple syrup if mixture looks too dry.
  4. Add espresso beans sprinkling around the food processor.  Pulse quickly to mix in.
  5. Use a cookie scooper to form balls.  I was able to get at least 1 espresso bean I could see in each ball.  You could always press an extra espresso bean into the ball too.
  6. Store the energy balls in an air-tight container in the refrigerator until they disappear. 
Zucchini Cake Muffins

Zucchini Cake Muffins

These muffins have all the spice and warm flavors from zucchini cake without the fat and sugar. I topped these with a yogurt icing to enhance the cake like flavor. Ingredients: Muffins- 1 cup whole wheat flour 1 cup almond flour 1 scoop vanilla protein