Year: 2013

Candied Pecans

Melissa King 20 Comments

These are so yummy and versatile!

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Here in Texas, many people have pecan trees.  We are not one of the lucky ones, but we do have several neighbors who do.  When I go for walks with my daughters, sometimes we collect a few that the squirrels have not gotten to yet.  My 3 year old thinks it’s the coolest thing ever.  These candied pecans can be used in so many ways.  You can toss them into plain yogurt, add them to cereal, throw them on a salad or just eat them straight up to curb a sweet tooth.

Candied Pecans

Candied Pecans

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Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 15 min

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups pecans (raw and unsalted)
  • 2 T pure maple syrup
  • 1 tsp crushed vanilla bean (you can use extract, but I think the crushed vanilla bean adds an extra sweetness that I can never get with the extract.)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375.
  2. In a bowl toss the pecans in maple syrup. If using extract, add that too.
  3. Once the nuts look well coated, spread them out onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
  4. Sprinkle the vanilla bean over the pecans and place in the oven.
  5. Bake for around 15 minutes, stopping halfway through to shake them pecans around a bit. Enjoy!

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars

Melissa King 46 Comments

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars.  I had a reader request a recipe the peanut butter chocolate larabar.  Since I love all things larabar, I wanted to make them asap.  They came out great!  I still love the Coconut Cream Larabar the best, but this one is pretty good too.

These healthy bars are no bake and super easy.  They freeze well too, so feel free to double the batch!

 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars

 

I am more of an almond butter girl myself, but my husband LOVES peanut butter so I know that these will be gobbled up fast.  I may try a second batch with almonds.  I love recipes like this because they are just so easy.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabars

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Prep Time 15 min

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. In the food processor , blend the peanuts and salt into a powder.
  2. Pit the dates and add them in as well.
  3. If needed, slowly add a bit of water to help the mixture come together.
  4. Once the dough is formed, line and 8×8 glass baking dish with parchment paper leaving enough room for some paper to stick out the sides.
  5. Carefully, spoon the dough into the pan evenly. The dough will be very sticky and you may need to wet the spatula a bit.
  6. Using the extra paper, pack the dough down until it is flat and even.
  7. Place in the fridge to firm up.

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Recipe Notes

I store them in the fridge. They should keep at least a week if you can get them to last that long!

Cucumber Salad with Chickpeas (Vegan)

Melissa King 13 Comments

Cucumber Salad with Chickpeas.  Last week when I posted my Black Bean and Spinach Salad, I told you it was my new favorite.  Well, this one comes in at a very close second!

 

salad 3

 

This salad would be a great addition to any backyard party.  I am a huge fan of cucumber salad, but so many recipes add sugar to it.

My recipe contains no added sugar and it is still just as good.  The chickpeas and tomatoes are my twist on this popular salad.  I wish I had doubled the batch because it was gone in the same day!

 

Cucumber Salad with Chickpeas

Cucumber Salad with Chickpeas

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Prep Time 20 min

Ingredients

  • 1 large cucumber cut in half then sliced thin
  • 1/2 shallot sliced thin
  • 1 can or 2 cups chickpeas drained and rinsed
  • 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes halved
  • 2 tsp fresh dill
  • 2 T white balsamic vinegar
  • 1 T mirin

Instructions

  1. Throw everything in a bowl and mix. That is it.

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Recipe Notes

I think the longer it sits, the better the flavors get as it marinates in the fridge. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

5 Minute Banana Ice Cream (Vegan)

Melissa King 114 Comments

This 5 Minute Banana Ice Cream is LIFE CHANGING.  Seriously.  Sometimes you just get a craving for some ice cream.

I make banana ice cream when I get those cravings.  Most store bought ice creams are laden with additives, saturated fat, processed sugar and too many calories.

I have an ice cream maker, but sometimes I forget to put the bowl back in the freezer.  So when I have a sweet craving, I make this super easy vegan banana ice cream.

 

5 Minute Banana Ice Cream

I have a smoothie version of this as well.  My Tropical Smoothie Peanut Paradise is made in a similar way.

The best part of this recipe is that you don’t need an ice cream maker to make this.  I use my vitamix, but I have used a magic bullet in the past as well.

You will be surprised at how decadent this banana ice cream tastes.  You will feel like you are cheating!  Can it get any easier?  I have used this many times to curb a sweet craving.  It really works!

Looking for more banana ice cream recipes?

5 Minute Banana Ice Cream

5 Minute Banana Ice Cream

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Prep Time 5 min Serves 1 serving     adjust servings

This stuff is so rich and delicious, it feels like you are eating real ice cream!

Ingredients

  • 2 peeled and frozen bananas
  • 2 T almond or peanut butter
  • 2 T almond milk
  • optional add ins: nuts, chocolate chips, fruit, coconut, cocoa powder

Instructions

  1. In a blender, , mix the bananas and the milk. You may need to cut the banana into chunks depending on how powerful your blender is.
  2. Once they are partly chopped up, add in the nut butter.
  3. Continue to blend until you get a soft serve consistency.

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Recipe Notes

You may not even need to add the milk at all, but I think it helps blend everything easier. Spoon ice cream into a bowl and stir in any additional ingredients you desire. That’s it!

BBQ Cauliflower Bites

Melissa King 25 Comments

I have told you before about my love of Cauliflower Popcorn.  Well this dish combines my love of the popcorn with my husband’s Homemade BBQ Sauce.  These may be even more addicting!  Who doesn’t like BBQ sauce, right?  This is a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies.

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I’m not going to lie, the entire tray was gone in about 5 minutes!  My 3 year old loved them!  Plus, they are super easy to make.

BBQ Cauliflower Bites

BBQ Cauliflower Bites

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Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 45 min

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400.
  2. Cut the cauliflower into florets. I save the scraps in the freezer so I can make my Homemade Vegetable Stock .
  3. Place cauliflower onto a lined baking sheet.
  4. Brush on BBQ sauce until the cauliflower are all covered.
  5. Place in the oven a bake for about 45 minutes, checking every 5-10 minutes or so to shake in order to prevent burning. 

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Recipe Notes

You may also want to brush more BBQ sauce on. That’s it. This didn’t last long in our house. My husband pretty much inhaled them!

Healthy Honey Mustard Dressing

Melissa King 150 Comments

Healthy Honey Mustard Dressing.  You have to try it!  My kids will eat almost any veggie in honey mustard dressing.  Can you relate?  Same goes for ranch dressing.  I like to make my own with real ingredients so I know exactly what is going into their mouths.

Plus, it’s super easy to make your own salad dressing.  You probably already have all the ingredients on hand to make this healthy dressing recipe!

Healthy Honey Mustard Dressing

If you wanted to keep this dressing completely vegan, you can use maple syrup instead of honey, and a non-dairy yogurt. I have done that and it’s works just as well.  I like to make this order rather than make a large batch. You can really do it either way, though.  For a larger batch, I suggest doubling the recipe.

Some other homemade dressing recipes you may like:

Healthy Honey Mustard Dressing

Healthy Honey Mustard Dressing

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Prep Time 3 min Serves 1 cup     adjust servings

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (vegans can try coconut yogurt)
  • 2 T yellow mustard
  • 1 1/2 T raw honey (maple syrup to keep it vegan)
  • 1 T lemon juice

Instructions

  1. Whisk all the ingredients in a bowl.

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Recipe Notes

Serve immediately or store in the fridge for later. I keep mine in recycled glass jam jars. It should last about a week. Super easy, right?