Chocolate Coconut Energy Bars

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. So when I ran out of energy bars and realized that I was also out of the tahini that I normally use for these bars, I had to get creative. Luckily, I had a jar of almond butter and a craving for chocolate, so out came a new version of energy bars. The cherries of the original version would be just as tasty here, but I decided to switch things up and add in banana chips (bananas are rich in potassium, a useful electrolyte). Dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants, and is also delicious, so the touch of chocolate and cocoa in these bars will certainly encourage you to get the energy you need for running...or whatever activity you've got going on.

See the link above for my rant on how important fueling is for running (spoiler: it's very important!). These bars will help you take in the calories you need, with loads of protein, carbohydrates, and nutrients to keep you going. They are gluten-free (if you have celiac disease, make sure the oats haven't come into contact with wheat), and can be made vegan if the honey is swapped out for maple syrup. The best part of all is that they taste great, and they're cheap and easy to make, so you can feel good about yourself all around!

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

3/4 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup sesame seeds

2 oz good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped

3/4 cup dried unsweetened banana chips, chopped

2 Tbsp chia seeds

1/4 cup natural cocoa

1 1/2 cups almond butter (or other natural nut/seed butter)*

1 cup wildflower honey (or 3/4 cup maple syrup if you want it vegan)

1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Soak banana chips in water for 20-30 min (basically until they're chewy), then drain.

2. Combine oats, coconut, almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chocolate, and chia seeds
in a large bowl.

3. Stir together honey (or maple syrup) and almond butter in a glass 4 cup measure, and heat in microwave for 1 min. Stir in vanilla.

4. Add wet mixture to dry, and stir in banana chips as well until mixture is well combined. Spread mixture onto a lightly greased 13x9" baking sheet.

5. These bars can be easily eaten raw, but can also be baked for 10-15 min in a 325 degree F oven. Slice into bars (I usually cut it into 20). Store in an airtight container at room temp for 1-2 weeks, or freeze for up to 3 months.

*if you choose to use almond butter (I use it, because I have a husband who's moderately allergic to peanuts), don't go running out to the store to buy a jar, which costs $9 or more for a 1 lb jar. If you have a food processor, you can make any nut or seed butter you want. Just buy the raw or roasted nuts, roast in a 325 degree F oven if needed until fragrant, then cool and process, adding in small amounts of a neutral oil (canola or sunflower) until desired consistency is reached. You can process them raw as well if you prefer, and you can flavor it however you want. You've just saved half your money and made a much more delicious nut butter yourself!

Blueberry Lemon Compote

It's blueberry season, and I just made it back from a short trip to Michigan with 15 lbs of blueberries. In other words, I'm in heaven. Every time I grab a handful of fresh Michigan blueberries, I'm transported back to my childhood, when my mom would take my sisters and I blueberry picking every summer. We'd strap on our gallon buckets and head out to the fields, with more blueberries making it into our stomachs than the buckets. There's no food that evokes summer so quintessentially as blueberries, and nothing but Michigan blueberries will really do for me. Luckily I'm still close enough to Michigan that I can find a way to get my fix each season!

Since 15 lbs is a tall order for one person to consume in a week, I froze many of them (which will still be amazing for some recipes that I have planned). I also ate blueberries for almost every meal of the day this week, tossed into granola and yogurt for breakfast, plain for lunch, and sometimes mixed with yogurt and some chocolate chips for dessert. I made my grandma's fresh blueberry cream pie, and I also made this blueberry compote. The compote is simple to make (and quick), and it was heavenly on waffles. I had a little leftover, so I stirred it into some vanilla yogurt, which was also delicious. Fresh Michigan blueberries are so good that only a touch of sweetening is needed, and the lemon gives it a light summery zest. The chia seeds are a cool way to thicken up the compote (making it quicker to cook), and also add a nutritional boost. You could make this with any other berry you could get your hands on, of course, with equally tasty results!

Ingredients

2 heaping cups of fresh blueberries, washed

zest and juice of one lemon

2 Tbsp clover honey

1 Tbsp chia seeds

Directions

1. Cook blueberries, lemon juice, and zest in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

2. After blueberries have cooked down (5-10 min), add chia seeds, and continue to cook until mixture has thickened (another 5-10 min).

3. Serve warm over waffles or pancakes, or allow to cool and stir into yogurt or spoon on top of ice cream. I made a smaller batch and ate it all in one evening, but it should last for a week in a sealed container in the fridge.
Serves four

Turkey Burgers with Cherry Catsup & Goat Cheese

My mom recently gifted me with a copy of an old-time Midwestern cookbook from 1877. As a bit of a history nerd, I find it fascinating to see how cooking, and food tastes, have (and haven't) changed over the years. Some recipes are probably best left to the past (umm, fried cow tongue? no thanks), and others I've added to my ever-growing list of recipes I'd love to give a try when I have the time (sigh). One that seemed particularly intriguing, and surprisingly easy, was one for "cherry catsup". Knowing that I had to make this, I thought of uses for it. Well, of course catsup goes with burgers, and what else? Goat cheese - of course! Add some farm-fresh spinach and tomato, and you've got yourself a burger you're not going to forget. I seasoned the ground turkey with a few basil leaves that I plucked from my kitchen plant, and I really think I'm going to do that from now on, cherry catsup or not, because the flavor was out of this world.

A note on the cherry juice: I just want to save you the shock of searching out cherry juice at the grocery store, only to find that a pint of juice is at least $8.50. Completely outside of my price range, to say the least! For a more economical option, pick up a bag of cherries (the tart kind, not sweet cherries); fresh, if you can get them in season, or frozen, like I did. It's really easy to get the juice out of them yourself, so it's worth the effort.

Ingredients

4 hamburger buns, split*

1 lb ground turkey

~1/4 cup basil leaves, torn

pinch of salt

goat cheese

several spinach leaves

4 slices tomato

For Cherry Catsup:

2 cups tart cherries (or 1 cup tart, unsweetened cherry juice)

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp cloves

large pinch cayenne pepper

2 tsp corn starch (in 2 Tbsp water)

Directions:

1. Mash cherries with a fork, then pour through a fine mesh colander, collecting the juice into a small pot, and gently pressing on the cherries to extract as much of the juice as you can (this will be easiest if the cherries are at room temperature).

2. Add sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and cayenne pepper, then bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and allow juice to cook down.

3. Once mixture has cooked down to about half volume, add in corn starch mixture, stirring well.  You can omit the cornstarch if you wish, but I didn't have the patience to wait two hours for the juice to cook down to the appropriate consistency.

4. Continue to heat until mixture has a catsup-like consistency. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Extra catsup can be stored in the fridge or freezer.

To Assemble:

1. Mix together turkey, basil leaves, and salt (& pepper, if desired). Gently form into 4 balls, then flatten. Grill or broil until heated through.

2. Spread goat cheese over top half of hamburger buns. Pile turkey burger, tomato, and spinach on bottom half, spoon cherry catsup over, then sandwich two halves together.

*make these hamburger buns (the recipe is super easy, and they're cheaper and better than the foamy buns you'd get at the grocery store - plus you can freeze the extras for 3-4 months in a sealed bag)

Peachy Keen

Having grown up in Michigan, I tend to be a bit particular about my fruits. In my (perhaps biased) opinion, nothing can really beat the flavor and freshness of Michigan-grown fruits. However, there is one fruit that Illinois grows quite well: peaches. This season's crop started showing up at the farmer's market at the end of May (a bit early, like everything else this year), and they are the sweetest, juiciest, most delicious little stone fruits you could lay your hands on. Then, a couple of weeks ago, one of the vendors offered a 12 lb box of their "ugly" peaches (bruises, dimples) for $10, and I could not resist. Of course, this meant that I had twelve pounds of perfectly ripe peaches to use up ASAP. I decided to take the excuse to try out canning by making some peach-honey jam (pretty delicious, although I'd add pectin next time, because it took forever to cook down to a jam). I also made a few other goodies that I'd like to share with you! Keep reading for Ginger-Peach Crisp, Peach Cupcakes, and Peach-Honey Sauce (the sauce is free of refined sugars!).

Ginger-Peach Crisp
Apple crisp is probably one of my favorite desserts of all time, so I'm not sure why I haven't expanded my fruit crisp repertoire before now. Either way, I'm glad I did - you could use the standard cinnamon as the spice here, but I like the flavor twist that ginger gives. It seems completely appropriate for a summer dish. My peaches went au natural, but you can always toss with a bit of honey if you want added sweetness. I topped this delicious stuff with vanilla Greek yogurt and called it breakfast (totally reasonable, right?), but you could also opt for a scoop of vanilla (or ginger) ice cream and have yourself an amazing dessert.
 

Ingredients

 5-6 cups peaches, washed and sliced (again, I kept the peel)

1 Tbsp honey (optional)

1/2 cup brown (or "raw") sugar

5 Tbsp cold unsalted butter

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 tsp ginger (heaping)

1/4 cup slivered almonds

Directions

1. Arrange peaches in a 8x8" baking dish. Sweeten by tossing with a small amount of honey if desired (if they're perfectly ripe and fresh, this shouldn't be necessary!).

2. Combine oats, flour, ginger, and almonds in a medium mixing bowl.

3. Cut cold butter into dry ingredients, working with fingertips or fork until mixture is crumbly.

4. Sprinkle topping over peaches, then bake in a 400 degree F oven for 30 min, or until top is brown and peaches are bubbling.

5. Serve warm with a hearty dollop of greek yogurt or a scoop of ice cream.

Peach Cupcakes with Peachy Buttercream Frosting
These are definitely an indulgence; nothing particularly healthy about these. That's not the point, though, right? The surprising twist to these is the cornmeal, which I added on a whim - it adds just a little bit of texture to these delicate, moist cupcakes.
Adapted from a peach muffin recipe on NPR's Kitchen Window
 

Ingredients

For Cupcakes:

3-4 peaches, peeled and diced (2-2 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground mace

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

For Frosting:

6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened

3 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup peach puree

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch salt

Directions

For Cupcakes:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and mace.

2.  Puree enough of diced peaches in a blender to give 3/4 cup puree (~1 cups diced peaches). Set aside 1/4 cup of the puree.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together peach puree, yogurt, eggs, and butter.

4. Stir liquid ingredients by hand into dry ingredients just until combined.

5. Gently fold in remaining diced peaches (1 cup).

6. Pour batter into paper-lined or greased muffin cups, filling each until almost full.

7. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 min, until cupcakes are golden brown.

8. Turn cupcakes out onto a wire rack and allow to cool.

For Frosting:

1. Using an electric mixer, cream butter. 

2. Add sugar in small portions, alternating with peach puree, and beat well after each addition.

3. Stir in vanilla and salt. If frosting is too thin, beat in a little more powdered sugar, or allow to chill, covered, in the refrigerator until it's better set.

4. Once cupcakes have sufficiently cooled, spread frosting on them, or put frosting in a bag and pipe onto cupcakes (I simply cut a hole in the corner of a plastic sandwich bag).

Honey-Peach Sauce

This stuff is incredibly easy to make, and takes about 10-15 min. I had it on top of homemade belgian waffles, which was divine, but I suspect it'd be equally good stirred in with yogurt or piled on top of vanilla ice cream.

 

Ingredients

4 peaches, washed and thinly sliced (you can peel too, I left them with the peel)

1/4 cup honey

pinch cinnamon, to taste

Directions

1. Combine peaches and honey in a small saucepan (you can add a little water if needed to make sure the peaches don't scorch). 

2. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon, and stir over medium heat until cooked down, about 10 min. 

3. Serve warm over pancakes, waffles, or ice cream.

Whole Grain Zucchini-Sunflower Seed Bread

Zucchini showed up at the farmer's market this week, so of course I scooped up a couple of those lovely squash. You can stir fry zucchini, put it in a salad, saute and toss with pasta...or make bread out of it. Can you tell I like making quick breads? Well, here's another one, and I promise, it's well worth the time to make it (and that's not very much time at all!). Zucchini helps make this bread nice and moist, while the combination of honey and spices give just enough sweetness and depth of flavor to satisfy. Even with 100% whole grains, the bread has a tender and delicate crumb, with a nice crunch from the sunflower seeds (especially the ones on top!). And no, it doesn't taste like zucchini, so you don't have to like zucchini to love this bread. It turned out so well that I had to keep myself from eating the whole loaf at once - just to warn you.

 

Adapted from NPR Kitchen Window zucchini bread recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground flaxseed meal (or more flour)

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

pinch salt

1 1/2 cup zucchini, unpeeled, coarsely grated (1 medium or 2 small)

1/2 cup honey (I used wildflower honey)

1/4 cup canola or sunflower seed oil

2 eggs

1 Tbsp orange zest (or 1 1/2 tsp bottled orange peel)

1/2 cup + handful raw sunflower seeds

Directions

1. Combine dry ingredients in a small mixing bowl.

2. Add zucchini, oil, honey, eggs and orange zest to a medium mixing bowl. Stir by hand until evenly blended.

3. Add dry mixture to wet, mixing by hand just until combined.

4. Fold sunflower seeds into mixture.

5. Pour batter into a lightly greased & floured 9x5" loaf pan. Sprinkle a handful of sunflower seeds on top, if desired.

6. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 55-60 min, or until outside is golden brown and bread springs back when lightly pressed.

7. Cool bread in pan for 10 min, then turn out of pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Almond-Strawberry Yogurt Muffins

Strawberry season is ending this week in Illinois, but just getting started elsewhere. It's just the beginning of summer's bounty of fruit, and I've tried to take full advantage. I usually eat strawberries raw or in a sauce, but I decided to try incorporating them into a baked good. This one took a couple of tries, but the end result was something hearty and delicious. Chopped strawberries and slivered almonds, oat flour for a little texture (and source of whole grains!), a mixture of honey and sugar for some subtle sweetness, plus yogurt to make for a moist muffin with just a little tang - put these things together, and you've got a great muffin to celebrate the start of summer!

Note: Allowing the strawberries to drain after chopping is important - my first attempt was pretty soggy, since the strawberries were too moist to allow the bread around them to properly cook. Also, while honey works well as a replacement for sugar, here using just honey led to an off flavor, so a mixture of honey and sugar was best.

Ingredients

1 cup oat flour, sifted*

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/3 cup clover honey
1/3 cup sugar

4 Tbsp butter, cold

3/4 cup plain lowfat greek yogurt

1 egg

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, & chopped

2/3 cup slivered almonds

Directions

1. Once strawberries are chopped, allow them to sit and drain in a colander.

2. Sift together flours, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar. Add in chunks of butter, and cut together with a fork (or food processor) until butter pieces are smaller than peas.

3. Mix yogurt, egg, and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Add flour-butter mixture and stir just until blended.

4. Fold in chopped strawberries and almonds, being careful not to overmix.

5. Spoon mixture into paper-lined muffin cups or a 9x5" bread loaf pan.

6. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 25-30 min (muffins) or ~1 hour (loaf).

7. Allow to cool in pan for 10 min, then transfer to a wire rack. Give in to the urge to bite into a muffin before they've cooled completely. Delayed gratification can be so overrated sometimes.

*Don't go out and buy oat flour; there's no need to overload the pantry. If you have a blender or a food processor, you can easily make your own in about 2 minutes. Take 1 1/4 cup rolled oats (not quick/instant oats), add to blender/processor, and turn on, stopping it to check every 30 sec or so until it's reached a flour-like consistency. Once that's done, just sift it through a sieve to get out the chunks and you've got yourself some fresh flour. This technique will give you whole flour for basically any grain, seed or legume you have lying around.

Egg Muffins with Curried Yogurt Sauce

Everyone knows about egg muffins. They're the ultimate handheld convenience breakfast food. However, you don't have to resort to the rubbery, greasy, tasteless monstrosities at the drive-thru if you want a filling breakfast in a hurry. You can whip up this nutritious high-protein delight in less than 10 min, with fresh ingredients that are full of flavor. You'll never see fresh greens on your typical fast-food egg muffin, but they have loads of vitamins and minerals, and add a wonderful crunch to the sandwich here. Curry-seasoned yogurt ups the flavor ante, so much so that you won't even want to put cheese on an egg muffin again. The yogurt sauce is simple to put together, and you can really mix up whatever flavor combination you desire based on the seasonings or herbs that you have on hand. The meat, of course, is entirely optional, but adds protein; I had bacon around, but deli meats or even seasoned cooked black beans would be an equally delicious (and healthier) alternative. Put all of it together on a whole-wheat english muffin with a hot cooked egg, and you've got yourself a real breakfast. Or, dinner, as was my case. ;)

Ingredients

4 whole wheat english muffins

4 eggs

handful of fresh spinach leaves, washed (or your favorite raw leafy green)

8 slices uncured bacon/turkey bacon, cooked (or 4 slices deli ham)

1/2 cup lowfat plain yogurt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp cumin

pinch salt

pinch cayenne (optional - for extra heat)

Directions

1. Split and toast english muffins. Meanwhile, cook eggs as desired (scrambled, poached, or fried).

2. For sauce: Whisk together yogurt and spices until well-mixed. Adjust amounts as desired (it's always good to start conservatively and add from there). Yogurt sauce can store in the refrigerator for a few days, if you wish to make it ahead of time.

3. Layer cooked egg, meat and spinach leaves on bottom half of english muffin. Spoon sauce onto other half of muffin and sandwich two halves together.

Serves 4