Healthy recipes for clean eating - Empowering Wellness- Coaching a Well Life

Turkey sliders with pineapple salsa and sweet potato tots

4/30/2015

I love my girl’s nights. I look forward to our nights together when I get to cook for someone who loves eating healthy and exploring new pallets. I found this recipe in the amazing Paleo cookbook. I altered a bit to enhance flavor and expand the meal.

Ingredients

2 lb sweet potatoes

1 lb ground turkey

½ cup red onion chopped

4 garlic cloves minced

½ cup peppers minced

1 cup fresh pineapple minced

1 tbl Dr. Braggs aminos

1 lime zested

½ cup cilantro chopped

Coconut oil

Poke holes in sweet potatoes, cook in 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. While sweet potato is cooking sauté onion, garlic, peppers in 1 tbl coconut oil until translucent. Remove a quarter of mixture, place in bowl with ground meat. Add lime zest, dr. braggs, and pineapple for another 5-6 minutes to get the pineapple to begin to caramelize. While caramelizing, mix meat together, form into patties, cover and place in fridge for 10-30 minutes until cooled. Remove pineapple mixture, place in container and add cilantro- cool in refrigerator. Remove sweet potato from oven, cool and peel off skins. Mash down and make into small tater tot size balls. Heat coconut oil, in medium size sauce pan or cast iron skillet. Have area large enough to cook about 4-6 tots. Oil should be about 2 inches high. Heat oil till boiling and piping hot. Tots will turn to mush if oil is not hot enough, so don’t overload them while cooking, take your time. Cook on each side for 1-2 minutes and lay out o paper towel. While tots are cooking, take sliders out of fridge and place on grill medium/high heat. Cook thoroughly 3-5 minutes each side. Resist pressing on it to see if juice is escaping. 8-10 minutes on the grill is plenty of time. Cut small incision to check. I placed my slider on top of a bacon/spinach, and mushroom bed. It was the perfect combo of sweet, hearty, salty, and decadent!!!

Too make the spinach bed, add 4 strips of bacon cut up to the pot after taking out the pineapple mixture. Fry up bacon and add spinach and mushroom till cooked down and wilted. Plate, place slider on top with salsa- potato tots on side.

Roasted garlic sweet pepper shrimp

4/28/2015

I always stock up on frozen shrimp when it is on sale and keep a bag in the freezer. It is just one of those meals that is quick to defrost and throw together when you are busy running around all day. Plus, it is easy to cook healthy and have your family love it. That is what I call a win-win!

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa cooked (use package direction)

1 lb shrimp (peeled)

3 cups of mixed veggies (I used carrots, green beans, and cabbage)

1 cup peppers chopped

3 cloves garlic minced

½ c. onion chopped

½ c. pineapple chopped

1 apple chopped

¼ c. honey

1 tbl ginger

½ tbl paprika

2 tbl Dr. Braggs All Purpose Seasoning and Soy Sauce

1/3 cup rice wine vinegar

Cook quinoa according to package, set aside. Prepare the sauce by sautéing the peppers and onions in 1 tbl extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil until onions are translucent. Add garlic and saute for one minute to roast it. Add pineapple and apple and saute for another 2-3 minutes to caramelize the sugars. Add remaining ingredients and whisk to ensure the honey is completely dissolved. Gather your shrimp and veggies and steam over boiling water for 6-10 minutes until the shrimp are pink and the veggies are soft but firm.

Caramel Mochaccino Shake

4/28/2015

I needed and extra burst of focus this morning for all my paperwork I need to get done. I decided to add my coffee to my morning Shakeology so that the protein can effectively counter-balance my caffeine and avoid the crash. I decided to give myself a treat after all the hard working out I have been doing so made it a little more tempting. The Caramel flavor boost will add 42 extra grams of sugar so make sure you are moving to burn this. I think you could do this one effective as a mochaccino without the caramel shot.

Ingredients:
1 package Chocolate Vegan Shakeology (or two scoops in 30 day package)
1/2 a banana
1 cup ice
1/2 vanilla unsweetened almond milk
1 shot Monin Caramel Syrup (optional)

Add in blender all ingredients, pulse on high until all ice is crushed. Enjoy!!!

ground turkey meatball Gyro salad

4/21/2015

Don't let your leftover meatballs go to waste. Re-invent them into a gyro, or for healthy eating a gyro salad. Just re-heat the meatballs and place on lettuce and tomatoes. Serve with Tzatziki Sauce and a side of pita. For a healthier alternative, I used whole wheat tortillas.

Tzatziki Sauce

Ingredients
1 cup greek yogurt
1 clove of garlic
2 tbl dill
1/2 tsp lemon juice

combine all ingredients and emulsify in a blender. enjoy!!!

Ground Turkey Meatballs

4/15/2015

I was hoping for something different tonight than ground turkey, but unfortunately was too busy finishing up the taxes and last minute details to be able to go to the store and get chicken. I decided to get creative with recipes instead. Hubs wanted his usual easy Mexican, burritos tonight, so while I cooked that, I started to prepare my meal. Using half of the 1 lb mixture of ground beef I made these delicious treats. There is so much flavor in them. I put these on top of mixed veggies and quinoa.

Ingredients:

½ lb ground turkey

¼ onion chopped

2 cloved garlic minced

¼ cup of steel cut oats

¼ almond meal

1 egg beaten

1 tbl ground ginger

½ tbl Dr. Braggs all purpose seasoning and soy sauce

Mix mixture together and cover with plastic wrap, cool in fridge for about an hour. Take out and form 8 medium size balls. Place in greased pan (I used a loaf pan-fit perfect!) Bake in preheadted oven at 375 for 25 minutes. These are easy and delectable. A new favorite. The sautéed mixed veggies were cooked in 1 tbl. Of coconut oil, 1 tsp sesame oil, ground ginger and turmeric. Then reduced in 1 tbl dr. braggs and 1 tbl rice wine vinegar. Saute on low until liquid is absorbed or veggies are done cooking. Enjoy! Makes 4 servings.

Easy baked cabbage rolls

4/14/2015

My husband was craving Italian, I didn’t have any more whole grain pasta and too tired to make noodles out of veggies. I decided to use the ground turkey mixture, prior to adding the jarred marinara sauce to some cabbage leaves to create this very easy and delectable treat.

Ingredients

¼ lb ground turkey

½ onion chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

Pepper to taste

1 tomato chopped and slightly smashed

2 tbl. Pomegranate red wine vinegar (you can use regular for a kick of flavor)

6 cabbage leaves

Brown ground turkey on stove top on medium high heat, remove excess fat and grease. Add onions and garlic until onions are translucent. Add in pepper to taste and tomato with vinegar. Cook on medium low for another 3-4 minutes then place in center of cabbage leaves and roll, tucking in adjacent side first then rolling onto itself. Place flap side down in greased pan. Cook for 15 minutes at 350 in oven. Serves 4.

Healthy and delicious pancakes

4/11/2015

I really wanted pancakes this morning, and didn’t want to cheat. So I decided to try a new recipe that would give me the cheat I wanted with the health that goes along with my healthy lifestyle. These pancakes tasted amazing!!! I am in love and don’t think I will need to do the processed bleached flour again. I tried a few variations so choose which one works for you.

Almond Flour Pancake

Ingredients:

1.5 cup Organic Almond Flour/meal

2 eggs beaten (cage free, farm fresh, organic)

1 tbl vanilla extract

½ tsp cinnamon

½ cup water

Mix all ingredients together. Cook on stove top in butter or coconut oil. I cooked bacon and cooked in the bacon grease and really offset the sweet flavors of the almond meal. Delicious!! Enjoy!

Tropical Vegan Shakeology Pancake

For 21 day fixers, try this with a dab of greek yogurt and strawberries on top. This equates to 1 serving equaling: ¼ yellow, 1 red, 1 blue, and 1/2 purple

Ingredients:

2/3 cup of almondmeal

1 serving tropical vegan shakeology

1 tbl vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon

1/3 cup of water

1 tbl. Coconut oil

Mix all ingredients, add more water if needed to get a smooth consistency. Cook on stove top over medium heat, flip when top begin to bubble. Cook another 1-2 minutes. Enjoy!

mango salsa

4/9/2015

Mango salsa is a delicious topping for any meal. I eat this with sushi, chicken, fish, and crab cakes. Make ahead and have a nice compliment to an easy and convenient dinner.

1 Fresh Mango cut into chunks
2 Tbl. roasted red pepper
1 tbl. green onion/chives
1 tbl. fresh herbs cut (parsley, cilantro, oregano, and basil)
1 clove garlic
1/2 tbl. balsamic vinegar
1 drop sesame oil
1 tbl. rice vinegar
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp pepper

Take about 1/3 c. mango and place in blender, add half herbs, garlic, sesame oil, and vinegar. Blend together and mix all remaining inredients in bowl. Add the liquid mixture and shake to mix. Put on top of heated crab cake or tilapia cake or even Caribbean chicken or a Caribbean burger. This is also the same base for my mango dressing (just add equal parts evoo) and I also use this on top of my delcious sushi rolls (minus the herbs and add just a sprig of sugar).

To finish this I added a japanese mayo with japenese hot sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and mayonaise. This is also what I had to my crab salad when making sushi and a delicious accent to sushi rolls. The spicy ofthe may pairs nicely with the soft sweetness of the mango. Enjoy!!

Leftover ham recipes

4/7/2015

Ham, Green Bean, and Potatoes

This is one of my favorite meals from childhood. There is something about the salty sweetness of the ham that flavors the green beans, and settles out with the potatoes. This is so easy to make and with transform your dinners. You can make this healthier by adding fresh veggies. My ham was cooked with a homemade glaze and reduced the processed foods in it.

Ingredients:

1 lb cooked ham

3 cups green beans

5 medium sized potatoes chopped

4 cups of water

Pour all ingredients into a pot and boil on high. Once rolling reduce to medium. Add pepper to taste. Try avoid the salt- there is already so much in the ham! J

Ham casserole

I love doing ham casserole to feed me yummy, filling breakfasts all week after Easter. This is a healthy alternative to my original recipe. It is still good. Try an added buzz by cutting up two slices of pineapple from the ham into the dish.

Ingredients:

½ lb ham

3 potatoes chopped and boiled, and cooled

10 egg whites

1 cup shredded cheese

1 tbl powder garlic

1 tbl powder onion

Pepper to taste

Grease casserole dish and place potatoes and ham on bottom. In spate bowl beat eggs and add remaining ingredients- mix thoroughly and pour on top of ham and potatoes. Cook at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until done. Enjoy!

Cauliflower Crust for Mexican Pizza

4/3/2015

There is so much hype with cauliflower pizza crust, I just had to try. I couldn’t see my clean eating being saturated with cheese, so I updated the recipe I found with almond meal to make it tacky and add adhesion to the cauliflower. This is such a delicious and filling recipe. Makes 8 servings.

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower
2 tbl. Onion powder
2 tbl garlic powder
1 tbl chili powder
1 tbl. Paprika
½ tbl Cheyenne powder
1 tbl cumin
2 eggs
½ cup almond meal
½ lb ground turkey
1/3 cup pico de gallo
3 leafs of lettuce
1/3 cup cilantro
½ avocado

Cut up cauliflower and mince in food processor. Steam in a basket or colander over boiling water for about 10-15 minutes. Place in fridge to cool for 8-10 minutes. Meanwhile, beat eggs and add in spices. Knead into cauliflower mixture. Mold into patties and place on greased cooking sheet in pizza dough crusts. Cook at 450 for 15 minutes. Flip halfway through. When browned on both sides add cooked ground turkey, pico de gallo, lettuce, cilantro and avocado. This is just amazing!