Peanut Butter Cookie Cereal!

I was going to make cinnamon pecan crunch cereal from cavegirlcuisine.com, because it's awesome!  But MR failed to mention that he had used the last of the pecans to make slow cooker steel cut oats (sometimes he uses pecans instead of the walnuts listed in the recipe).  I already had the sunflowers and the coconut in the bowl, so I was making SOMETHING!  Then I realized I was out of almond butter! Seriously?!  What is going on in my kitchen?  What I ended up with was this great recipe for cereal that tastes like peanut butter cookies.  The crunchy kind!  But with no flour and no sugar.  So the healthy kind too!  You could also mix this with Greek yogurt.  That would be FAB-ulous!



Peanut Butter Cookie Cereal

1/2 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup finely chopped peanuts
2 heaping TBSP peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
2 TBSP coconut flour
2 TBSP almond meal (or almond flour)
1 TBSP cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 9x13 baking pan (cake pan) with a little coconut oil.  Mix ingredients together in a bowl, blending well.  Pour mixture into baking pan and press mixture down firmly and evenly.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned.  Allow to cool.  Break apart and store in airtight container.  Serve with almond milk or mixed into Greek yogurt.

This is so easy and takes so little time.  And then I have it all week long.  Hope you enjoy it! Keep it Clean!

Are you Ready for Some Football?! Super Super Bowl Ideas!

Every Super Bowl party I have even been to has revolved as much around friends and food as it has football. Wouldn't it be awesome to have a clean party?!  I can promise you, no one will know you are serving clean and healthy food with these recipes!  I will keep this short and send you right to the recipes!!!

(For these and more recipes, also check out my Pinterest Super Bowl Party page!)

First off, of course, you need some chicken nuggets and some honey mustard sauce!  Here are two really great recipes.  The nuggets take a little time to prepare, but they are totally worth it!

Garbage Free Chicken Nuggets
Honey Mustard Sauce

Or, if you prefer, you can make these chicken bites.  Everything tastes awesome with balsamic!  Or make them both!  What the heck!
Honey Balsamic Glazed Chicken Bites

Maybe something a bit heartier?  These sandwiches are the bomb!
Pesto Chicken Sandwiches

Now let's add in some other fun-to-look-at, and even more fun-to-eat nibbles!  Give folks some options with kabobs and pizzas!
Pineapple Chicken Kabobs
Portabella Mushroom Pizzas

How about some mushrooms?  How about mushrooms stuffed with prosciutto and feta?!?!?!

Prosciutto and Feta Stuffed Mushrooms

Make it Fresh!  Make it Clean!

And a few odds and ends for our snackers.....

Rainbow Fruit Skewers
Chili Doritos
And let's not forget... honey roasted peanuts, hot and spicy peanuts, quinoa pizza bites, and chili lime chicken wings!

And dessert!!!   No bake brownies - MR thought these were baked! And one more for our (gasp) non-chocolate eaters.... Oatmeal Awesome Cookies.

I Wrote it Down for You!

Because sometimes life is so hard, this week I am going to provide you with a grocery list to make my menu items.  I will throw some other items on there too, so you can have lunch and breakfast and some snacks!

Items I assume you have in your kitchen... if not, add them to the list
sea salt
garlic
water
ground pepper
olive oil
butter
honey
clean nut butter


LIST
6 oz can tomato paste
1 can coconut milk
clean bread
sliced cheese (buy something good like a nice cheddar!)
slicing tomato
fresh basil (optional)
balsamic vinegar
2 medium chicken breasts
3# (approx.) brisket
16 oz. jar pepperoncini
frozen vegetables (choice)
salad greens (choice)
Greek yogurt (we like Fage)
Old fashioned oats
raisins
apples


Yes... with these ingredients and the entree recipes on this week's menu, you can make dinner this week!  The brisket leftovers will be used for sandwiches.  It only covers 4 nights because one night everyone eats leftovers!  You can also make the granola to have for breakfast.  Eat it with milk or stir some into Greek yogurt.  Lunches are always leftovers at my house!  Snacks are often apples and nuts or some kind of nut butter.  So while this may not be the most versatile list, it sure is cheap!!!  Waste not, want not, always have a plan, and Keep it Clean!!!








Creamy Tomato Soup - This is super-duper easy and can be doubled or tripled without problem.  Season to the taste you want.  I add some basil!  And what else goes with tomato soup but.....

 Toasted Cheese Sandwich - The secret to this recipe is in the cooking!

Honey Balsamic Chicken Tenders - I made a balsamic pot roast this week that was out of this world, so now balsamic vinegar is my new best friend.  Can't wait to try these!  I will pair them with a nice salad!

Pepperoncini Brisket - This is so easy it doesn't even really require a recipe.  Just drop a brisket into your slow cooker and dump a jar of pepperoncini (including the liquid) over it.  Cook on low for about 10 hours.

Brisket Sandwiches - What a fabulous way to use up leftovers!  Just tear the leftover brisket up, reheat, and serve over clean bread! 

Hey, Grampa, What's for Supper?

Did you ever watch Hee-Haw?  If you're old like me, you probably did.  Remember the little skit with Grampa Jones, where they would ask, "Hey, Grampa, what's for supper?"  Then he would list a bunch of weird foods.  Yeah, I never really understood that skit and what was funny about it.  And I really do have a good, albeit warped, sense of humor.

What exactly is a Fly Army?

Speaking of my sense of humor.  I was following this van the other day and could only envision a bunch of flies in formation wearing combat boots and helmets.  Is it just me?????

Anyway, here it is another freezing cold morning.  The heat just runs and runs and that bugs me.  I hate the sound of my money flying out the window to the electric company.  But feeling pretty blessed that I have a good furnace that is keeping me warm!!  Man, this has been a cold January.  And yeah, I know it's Winter... but we live south of the Mason-Dixon line, so I expect a little better!  :-)

All this cold weather makes me want to make lots of yummy comfort foods.  That's a good thing, as long as I am keeping it clean!  Soups and roasts!  Yes!  And what else shall we have this week????  Well, let's see!

Creamy Tomato Soup - This is super-duper easy and can be doubled or tripled without problem.  Season to the taste you want.  I add some basil!  And what else goes with tomato soup but..... (link is bad! Sorry!)

 Toasted Cheese Sandwich - The secret to this recipe is in the cooking!

Honey Balsamic Chicken Tenders - I made a balsamic pot roast this week that was out of this world, so now balsamic vinegar is my new best friend.  Can't wait to try these!  I will pair them with a nice salad!

Pepperoncini Brisket - This is so easy it doesn't even really require a recipe.  Just drop a brisket into your slow cooker and dump a jar of pepperoncini (including the liquid) over it.  Cook on low for about 10 hours.

Brisket Sandwiches - What a fabulous way to use up leftovers!  Just tear the leftover brisket up, reheat, and serve over clean bread!

We will also have a mustgo night... everything in the fridge Must Go!  If there's not much in the way of leftovers, we have stuff to make pizza with a Trader Joe's whole wheat crust.

Some other tasties we might have this week include......

Apple Pie Balls - I haven't made these in a while but they take just minutes and are so delightful!

Chocolate Dipped Figs - Another super easy treat!  Awesome!!!!

Clean Eating Granola - This is my favorite granola recipe.  You can add other ingredients if you like, but this one is perfection to me!  I eat it as a cereal, mixed in with Greek yogurt, or as a snack!

Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats  - MR has been making this about once a week for over a year.  This is his breakfast every weekday morning.  He makes a slow cooker full on the weekend and then scoops out a serving every morning for his breakfast.  So easy, so yummy!  And you can add other ingredients if you like!

SLOW COOKER STEEL CUT OATS
2 cups steel cut oats
2 cups almond milk (or other milk of your choice)
2 cups water
1 T vanilla
1 T cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins
Granny Smith apple, peeled and chopped

Mix together in slow cooker.  Cook on low for 2-1/2 to 3 hours, stirring about once an hour.  Allow to cool and store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Desserts, Desserts, Desserts!

I totally get it!  You want your dessert.  I sure can understand that.  I am married to an "Eat dessert first" kind of guy, and I am not one to turn down a cookie.  So I have compiled some of my favorites.  On this snowy day, I hope you have a chance to stay in and bake or no-bake!

Oatmeal Awesome Cookies- This is my current all time favorite.  MR made these one day when he was home and I was at work.  I just love coming home to surprises like this.  Plus they truly are amazing!

No Bake Chili Brownies - These taste like fresh baked but no baking required.  A few minutes with your food processor and voila!  Brownies!

Flourless Cranberry Scones - I really love cranberries.  These are so easy you won't believe how awesome they taste.  I like to make them ahead and freeze some.

Gourmet S'mores with Coconut!

Gourmet S'Mores- Clean eating gourmet s'mores take a little more time than most of the dessert recipes I use.  But these are totally worth it.  Pin this one for the next time you have a backyard barbecue, and wow all your friends with this grown up twist on a perennial favorite!  In the photo above, rather than dip the whole thing in chocolate, I dipped just the graham cracker in chocolate twice, allowing it to dry between.  Then when the second coat of chocolate was still damp, squirt some "fluff" on using a pastry bag, and sprinkle with unsweetened coconut.

Molasses Oatmeal Raisin Cookies - Another cookie creation from MR!  These make the perfect breakfast cookie!

Make Your Own Lara Bars - www.Mywholefoodlife.com has a bunch of different flavor combinations or create one of your own.  Takes just a few minutes to make!

Clean Eating Peppermint Patties - Making your own peppermint patties might seem complicated, but it couldn't be easier!  Just a few ingredients and a little time and you are on your way to a treat you can feel good about.  Get the sensation!

Hope you have a wonderful snow day, whether it snowed where you are or not!  Whatever you're doing today, Keep it Clean!

The Muffin Man Comes to Visit on a Snow Day!

I am a Yankee living south of the Mason-Dixon line.  In the winter, that translates to possibility of snow equals snow day!  I love it!  What would be a nuisance to my northern friends, is a really big deal here.  I have been stuck in the snow, slipped and slided all the way home from work, and scraped away 2" of partly cloudy from my windshield more times than I care to count.  So this geographically dispersed Yankee will take  every snow day they want to throw at me!

I did go out for a walk this morning.  Walked to the boardwalk to get a cup of coffee.  The wind is picking up off the water and it's getting pretty cold out there.  Just reaffirmed my decision to pretty much stay put and wait for the snow.  In the meantime, though, why not warm up the kitchen with something really tasty?!  I took some bananas out of the freezer in anticipation of one recipe, but when I looked at it more closely, it was far too complicated.  Not going to burden myself or you with a complicated recipe.  Cooking and eating should be enjoyable and I, for one, don't get any pleasure out of complicated recipes.  So easy muffins it is!  I found one online that looked pretty good but all the ingredients weren't clean.  Can't have that!  So I cleaned it up and here is the result.

When cranberries are in season around Thanksgiving, I buy a lot of them and either dry them and freeze them or just freeze them fresh.  Either way works in this recipe.  If you didn't plan ahead in November to make these in January (LOL) then you can buy fruit juice sweetened dried cranberries at Whole Foods.  Be careful, though, because the majority of dried cranberries are sugar-sweetened.  I don't sweeten my cranberries because I like the tartness of them combined with the sweet of whatever I am mixing them into.

Banana Cranberry Muffins with Chopped Pecans

Banana Cranberry Muffins

2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1 egg
3 TBSP coconut oil (liquefied)
3 mashed bananas (about 1-1/4 cups)
1/4 cup almond milk (or other milk of your choice)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup cranberries (dried or fresh frozen)
1/4 cup chopped pecans, optional (or walnuts will work)

Preheat oven to 350.  Line 12 serving muffin pan with cupcake liners.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
In a separate bowl, whisk together coconut sugar and egg.  Mix in coconut oil, bananas, milk, and vanilla.  Add dry mixture to wet mixture and stir just until combined.  Fold in cranberries.
Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin tin.  Sprinkle chopped pecans on top of each muffin.
Bake 18-22 minutes until top springs back when lightly pressed.

Makes 12.

I hope you like these because I sure do.  Not light and fluffy like you get with regular white flour, but really good anyway!!!  Whatever you are doing on this snow day, Keep it Clean

Keepin' it Easy, Keepin' it Clean!

Two things seem to hold folks back from clean eating.

1)  You think it's hard.  Yes, you have to prepare most of your meals from scratch, but it doesn't have to be hours of a heated up kitchen.  Like many families, we both work outside the home.  Plus, we have crazy long commutes!  So we want to be able to come home and make a quick supper.  I am always on the search for things that are simple but still tasty and, most of all, clean!

2) You think it's expensive.  Initially, restocking your kitchen and getting rid of the junk can seem expensive.  But as you progress, I think you can do this without it being significantly more expensive.  And think of the trade off!  But one way I offset any added expense is by planning!  I make a menu every week, and try to do two very important things:  First, use what I already have in the cupboard or fridge and, second, find a way to use leftovers.  I have said it before and I will say it again.  It is so important to plan!  So take some time once a week and make a meal plan.  Don't just plan the evening meals, either.  Remember to think about what you'll have for breakfast, lunch, and snacks!

Enough of that!  Let's get to the recipes!!!!

Fajitas - Last week we had a beautiful balsamic beef roast.  I will use some leftovers, throw in some spices, and reheat it with sauteed peppers and onions.  These will get wrapped up in whole wheat tortillas.  *Yes, I buy a few things already made.  There is only so much I can get done in a week!*

Chili - Super easy and you can make it the way you like it!  Our basic recipe is 1# grass fed ground beef, 26 oz can crushed tomatoes, 1 can pinto beans (drained), 1 can black beans (drained and rinsed), chopped onion, chopped green pepper, spices to taste.  Simmer that stuff!

Grilled Chicken and vegetables - Another one that you can just throw together based on your own tastes and what you have in the cupboard.  A good basic recipe:  Rub a little olive oil all over the chicken.  Sprinkle with Italian seasonings.  Grill or bake!

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad - I made this for the first time last week and it made me so happy.  Not only is it filled with wonderful ingredients, but it tastes amazing!  This week, I will throw a little leftover chicken in with it.  Not that it needs it, but that's a good way to stretch it so I am sure to have leftover for my lunch!

Paleo Pizza - MR just loves his pizza.  I like making them personal pan size so I can freeze leftovers for another day, or take them in my lunch.  Use really good quality cheese.  It may cost a little more, but it makes such a difference.  I like Trader Joe's Quattro Formaggio!

Cinnamon Pecan Crunch Cereal - I haven't tried this one yet but doesn't it sound ab fab?!  I get up really really really really (really!) early so I need something I can shove in my bag and eat when I get to work.

Oatmeal Awesome Cookies - These were MR's contribution to the dessert list last week!  Holy wheat-free macaroni, did you try these?!  I can't tell you how amazing they were.  I think it was the coconut sugar.  If you have to, you could probably sub another sweetener but I would highly recommend not, if you can help it.  I had to freeze some of these because we were ripping through them too fast.  (Did I tell you I have issues with moderation?)

What else?  Snacks, lunches, breakfast.  Lots of Greek yogurt and fresh fruit, smoothies, and leftovers!  What kind of recipe would you like to see?  Tell me in the comments and I will see what I can come up with!

Whatever you eat, just Keep it Clean!