Welcome to My Kitchen
I love cooking! We all know that eating and working out go hand and hand so why not love what you’re making? I decided to share with you the best and healthiest recipes that I and my clients have grown to love. From deserts to dinners here are some great meals to get you started on your healthy lifestyle change! Most of these recipes I have found online from amazing food artists who I have sourced at the bottom of each recipe. Just click the link to find out how to make the recipes from these talented cooks! I am very grateful for these amazing professionals who make eating not only healthy…but enjoyable! Please take note that I do swap out some of the ingredients that I find in recipes for healthier options. If you want the original ingredients you will find them on the professionals website. Here are some of my favorite recipes that I cook in my kitchen regularly!
SEASONINGS
Fajita Seasoning Mix
Spice up your fajita's with this mouth watering mixture of healthy herbs and spices. No more packaged fajita mixes with preservatives, sugars and other unwanted ingredients. This recipe is super easy to make, healthy and makes enough for more than one dinner. Try it out!
Ingredients:
2 T ground cumin
1 T pink Himalayan or Celtic salt
4 tsp black pepper
3 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp paprika (you can use smoked paprika too)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley
1/4 cup chili powder
Directions:
Mix them together thoroughly in a jar.
Two tablespoons = 1 package of store bought fajita seasoning
Makes enough for more than 1 meal.
Store the rest in a sealed tight container.
Breakfast
Fluffy Greek Yogurt Pancakes
These pancakes are all natural, packed full of real nutrients and contain no protein powders. I don’t know about you but I am super picky when it comes to making pancakes. I use to always buy an all natural pancake mix (which I loved) until they stopped selling the brand at local stores. I decided to start looking for pancake recipes that I could make from scratch. The recipe had to be quick, easy, and of course… all natural. Luckily, I found this one on my first try and I can definitely say I am so happy I did! This recipe makes up to 20 pancakes and they taste even better when they are reheated (in a toaster, not microwave). This is another client favorite! They are great for meal prepping or for having guests. Get out your griddle and start making these for breakfast… or dinner!
Ingredients
2 cups white whole wheat flour (Bob’s Red Mill)
2 tablespoons coconut sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder (all natural brand like Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 teaspoon Celtic salt or pink Himalayan salt
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk (I use whole, non-homogenized milk)
1 cup plain Greek yogurt (all natural brand like Fage)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
Optional toppings: almond butter, raw peanut butter, strawberries, raw maple syrup, agave, avocados
Pancake fillers: cacoa nibs, bluberries, dark chocholate (my favorite)
Healthy Blueberry Muffins
I don’t know about you but I am a huge fan of muffins for breafkast when I am on the go. Throughout college I would always buy the packaged and highly processed blueberry muffins that I could quickly grab before class or practice. I “thought” it was the healthier choice since it had blueberries (my favorite muffins were chocolate with chocolate chips). Obviously it wasn’t. Remember fake ingredients (especially fake sugars) do not satisfy our “I am full” hormones. They actually leave us wanting more which is one of the reasons why fake sugar is so addicting. This recipe makes 24 delicious muffins that leave you feeling satisfied without the guilt! Hope you enjoy!
Ingredients:
3 cups white whole wheat flour
1 Tablespoon all natural baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Celtic or pink Himalayan salt
2 large eggs
1 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt
3/4 cup raw honey (you can also use agave)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (I use whole, non-homogenized milk)
1/2 cup raw butter or coconut oil, slightly cooked
2 cups fresh or frozen organic blueberries (if frozen, do not thaw first)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease 24 baking cups with coconut oil (use a pastry brush), or line them with paper liners. Set aside.
Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together in a large bowl, and whisk until completely combined. Set aside.
In a separate mixing bowl, add the eggs, Greek yogurt, honey, vanilla, and almond or whole milk and whisk until completely combined. Gradually add in the melted butter (or coconut oil), whisking continually as you add it in so that its warmth doesn’t accidently cook the eggs. Whisk until completely combined.
Pour the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl with dry ingredients, using a rubber spatula to gently fold everything together until just combined. (Be really careful not to overmix the batter.) Gently fold in the blueberries until just combined.
Scoop the batter into the prepared baking cups, filling them 3/4 full and topping with a few extra fresh blueberries if desired.
Bake for 17-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the muffin comes out clean. Remove and let cool on a wire rack. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
Healthy Bagels
Stop buying store bought, enriched and bleached bagels with one hundred other ingredients you cannot pronounce. This recipe requires minimal ingredients and can be made in bulk. We like to freeze them and take them out every morning (make sure you slice them before freezing them) and put them in the toaster. Unfortunately we do not have the original recipe owner but we do give thanks to our client Chloe for sending us this recipe!
Bagel Dough Ingredients:
2 cups organic whole white wheat flour
1 teaspoon organic baking powder
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
Toppings for Bagels:
1 egg
Everything bagel seasoning mix, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, etc (all optional)
You can also do cinnamon and coconut sugar bagels
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly coat baking sheet with coconut oil.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and baking powder with the yogurt until the mixture clumps together by hand for about 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Dust with additional flour as needed if the dough is too sticky (see Recipe Notes below for tips).
Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Shape each portion of dough into a ball. Use your thumbs to make a hole in the center of each ball. Gently pull and stretch until the dough is a uniform sized ring. Repeat with remaining rounds. Flour your hands as needed.
Arrange the shaped bagels on the prepared baking sheet. Mix together the egg wash by whisking the egg. Brush the egg wash mixture over the bagels. Sprinkle desired toppings over bagels.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, rotating the baking sheet midway through baking. Remove from the oven. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F and put in for another 2-3 minutes.
Lunch
Colorful Veggie Salad
Here is a healthy, delicious, and easy to make veggie salad that you can take with you to work or eat as a side for dinner. It gives my husband and I enough to last the entire work week.
Ingredients:
2 peeled and diced English cucumbers
3 medium sized tomatoes
1 cup chopped sweet or red onion (as much or as little as you want)
1 large green pepper chopped
1 large orange pepper chopped
1 large yellow pepper chopped
1/3 cup cold pressed and unrefined extra virgin olive oil
Crumbled feta cheese to taste ( I used all 4 ounces because I love feta cheese.)
1 tablespoon of lemon juice (not concentrated)
1 tablespoon of oregano
Directions:
Chop up cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, and peppers. Put them into a large bowl.
Mix separately in a small bowl; extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and oregano. (The dressing isn't strong so if you would like the taste more powerful, double the ingredients.)
Add dressing and feta cheese to veggies and mix thoroughly.
Refrigerate in a tight sealed container and save for the week.
Provides 15-20 servings. Double it if you would like more.
One of my lovely friends introduced this recipe to me and I couldn’t thank her enough. It is a great salad to take out on the boat when we are out on the lake all day. Thanks Jenn!
You should be getting at least 8-10 servings of veggies per day. One serving is equal to the size of your fist. Eat up!
DINNERS
Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad with Roasted Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
1 red onion cubed
2 medium zucchini’s cubed
1 red bell pepper cubed
1 yellow bell pepper cubed
1 orange bell pepper cubed
1 garlic bulb
1 lemon halved
Salt and pepper to taste
Avocado oil
Olive oil (unrefined and cold pressed)
Balsamic glaze
Pearled couscous (also called Israeli or Middle Eastern couscous)
2 Chicken Breasts
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
Tbsp fresh parsley (can also use dill, basil, chives)
Directions for veggies
Drizzle avocado oil over veggies, garlic and lemon halves and season with salt and pepper.
Roast in a 450 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until golden, stirring every now and then.
Cook pearl couscous according to package directions. Let cool slightly in a large bowl with a touch of olive oil and stir.
Make vinaigrette: roasted lemon halves, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 3 Tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper.
Assemble: pear couscous, roasted veggies, chopped herbs (dill, parsley, chives, basil), crumbled feta and vinaigrette.
Directions for chicken
Bring chicken out of the fridge 20 minutes before, pat dry, season with Celtic or pink Himalayan salt and pepper and whatever else you like. Medium heat sear on each side for 2 minutes with avocado oil and finish in 350 degree oven until internal temperature reaches 165! It is about 12 minutes in the oven if for medium thickness chicken.
Deserts
All Natural Apple Crisp
Ingredients
6 medium (6 cups) tart cooking apples, peeled, cored, sliced (I used McIntosh apples)
3/4 cup firmly packed coconut sugar
3/4 cup uncooked sprouted oats
1/2 cup whole white wheat flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raw butter or ghee
all natural vanilla ice cream (optional, only if desired) I personally think it tastes better without!
Directions
Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
Place sliced apples into ungreased 8-inch square baking dish.
Combine coconut sugar, oats, flour and cinnamon in bowl, cut in butter with pastry blender or fork until mixture resemebles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle sugar mixture over apples. Bake 25-35 minutes or until apples are tender and topping is golden brown.
Serve warm with or without ice cream.
All Natural Strawberry Cheesecake
I don’t know about you, but we are not too big of fans of cakes on birthdays. Not sure if we are all caked out from our birthday parties in the past years but I can promise you will not regret replacing this cheesecake over birthday cake!! This is by far my husbands favorite desert and he was very impressed with the savoring taste of this real cheesecake. Forget store bought!
Ingredients for the Filling
2, 8 oz blocks all natural cream cheese
1 3/4 cups plain Greek yogurt
2/3 cup coconut sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp lemon juice
Ingredients for the Crust
1 1/2 cups of all natural graham cracker crumbs (about 10-11 sheets)
5 Tbsp raw unsalted butter or ghee
1 Tbsp coconut sugar
Ingredients for the Topping
1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh strawberries
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 Tbsp chia seeds
I promise this recipe will not disappoint!
Dips
Avocado Chocolate Fruit Dip
Looking for a great dish to bring to those summer barbecues?! Look no more! This fruit dip is one of my families all time favorites. Every time I bring this dish to a family get together, it is gone within 20 minutes so I tend to double the recipe. It’s one of our summer favorites! Enjoy!
Ingredients
2 large ripe avocados
½ cup raw maple syrup
⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (cacao powder can also be used)
½ Tbsp vanilla extract
Pinch of pink Himalayan salt
2 Tbsp of whole non-homogenized milk (can use almond, cashew or coconut)
Assortment of fruit: strawberries, blueberries, bananas, apples, grapes… choose a variety of color!