What I Ate Wednesday #25 – Healthy Holiday Recipes

Have you entered my Hail Merry Macaroon giveaway? Only 2 more days!

I can’t lie, my meals have been pretty less-than-interesting over the last week. I’m a creature of habit and when I do a lot of food prep on Sundays, I tend to eat a lot of the same meals during the week. But I’ve been having fun in the kitchen and am happy to be sharing a couple healthy Hannuka recipes just in time for the holiday!

[Breakfast]
Like I said, creature of habit. I’m still going strong in my Sweet Breakfast Scramble obsession!

[Lunch]
Tone It Up‘s Carrot & Pumpkin Soup and a Jamie Eason turkey meatloaf muffin. This was seriously the easiest lunch and so delicious. I didn’t mind having it almost everyday.. in fact, I enjoyed it!

[Dinner]
Sushi! It was a nice night for a date so we hit up a happy hour for a glass of wine (or beer) and some delicious sushi.  I didn’t snap pictures of the edamame and pork shumai but they were delicious, as always. Salmon and avocado wrapped in cucumber is also always a great choice, but my treat roll was the crab stick, cucumber, and avocado topped with more avocado, salmon, tuna, and a little eel sauce. SO yum! Nathan got pork yakisoba and it was equally as wonderful. If you’re in Baltimore and looking for good sushi, I highly recommend Naname Cafe!

[Snacks] not pictured
Apple, Madagascar Vanilla KIND Bar, and 1/2 of a blueberry ricotta muffin. I love having 1/2 muffin in the afternoon to help hold me over.. so tasty!

Onto the fun stuff!

I’m so glad we’re sharing healthy holiday recipes because I just tested a few for Hannuka!

Sweet Potato & Zucchini Latkes

Makes 18 latkes

Ingredients
1/2 cup zucchini, shredded and drained
2 cups sweet potato, shredded
2 large egg whites
2 tbsp coconut flour* [I use Bob’s Red Mill, but you can sub other flour if you don’t have coconut!]
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp xylitol* + extra for sprinkling [You can sub regular sugar or other sugar substitutes]
1/2 tsp salt

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, shape into 18 equal balls, and flatten into pancakes. Bake about 1 hour, flipping half way through.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack. Sprinkle with a little extra xylitol and cinnamon and enjoy!

Nutritional Stats
Per pancake without toppings

21 Calories  /  0g Fat  /  4g Carbs  /  1g Fiber  /  0g Sugar  /  1g Protein

Baked Sufganiyot

Makes 12 minis

If you’re not familiar with sufganiyot, they are jelly-filled donuts that are a staple during Hannuka. But of course jelly-filled donuts are not exactly on the healthy treats list, so I wanted to create a more figure-friendly way to enjoy these tasty treats.

Ingredients
1/4 cup unbleached white flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 large egg white
1/4 cup xylitol* + extra for sprinkling [You can sub regular sugar or other sugar substitutes]
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk [I use Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk]
4 tbsp your favorite jam [I used blackberry preserves]
~1/2 – 1 tbsp agave nectar*
~1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F and grease mini muffin pan. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients from flour through milk until just incorporated.

Fill each muffin tin with about 1/2 tbsp of mix to just cover the bottom. Place about 1 tsp of jam in the middle of each “donut” and then top with the rest of the mix. Bake for about 12 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean (minus the jam!), turning half way through.

Remove from the oven and let cool about 5-10 minutes. Drizzle with agave nectar and sprinkle with cinnamon and xylitol. Enjoy guilt-free!

Nutritional Stats
Per mini “donut”

52 Calories  /  0g Fat  /  14g Carbs  /  1g Fiber  /  5g Sugar  /  1g Protein

*These ingredients can be found on iHerb.com. Use code ZAF482 to receive $5 off of your first order.

Food for Thought

What are some of your favorite holiday recipes? Do you go towards the healthy options or the unhealthy treats?

Sundays in the Kitchen

Somehow, even after a 4-day weekend, Monday still seems to come too soon. So to drown my pre-work week sorrows, I decided to spend the day in the kitchen cooking and baking up a storm!

I had a special request (weeks ago.. oops!) for chocolate chip cookies, so I started there. Last month, Brown Eyed Baker had a chocolate chip cookie throwdown featuring 4 recipes, one of which was our favorite from Alton Brown. Showing Nathan was a mistake.. he immediately wanted to have a throwdown of our own. Rather than having our throwdown, we decided to try the winning recipe; The New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies.

The New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

How can you resist chocolate chip cookies like that?! We certainly couldn’t and the verdict is in; we may just have a new favorite chocolate chip cookie!

To combat the indulgent cookies, I got my healthy cook on and prepped some delicious meals for the week. A new recipe from the Tone It Up girls, Carrot & Pumpkin Soup, will be making many appearances this week during lunch along with Jamie Eason’s Turkey Meatloaf Muffins via Sarah Fit. We also have some honey wheat rolls, bulgogi beef prepped for tonight’s dinner, and my latest creation;  Blueberry Ricotta Muffins. I was so happy with the way they came out. They’re super moist and are perfect to have with a little jam.. or in my case, peanut butter. Because everything is better with peanut butter!

Blueberry Ricotta Muffins

Serves 12
Adapted from The Lean Green Bean

Ingredients
2 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk [I use Almond Breeze]
1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese
1/2 cup pumpkin puree [Not pumpkin pie mix! I use Libby’s]
1 egg
1/4 cup demerara or brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Optional Toppings
Jelly or jam
Any nut butter
Earth Balance Coconut Butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients from coconut oil through vanilla extract. Slowly mix in your flour and baking powder until that is just mixed through. Don’t over mix! Gently fold in the blueberries so they are equally distributed.

Grease a muffin tin and scoop into tins in 12 equal parts. Bake for 30 minutes, turning halfway through. Let cool, top with your favorite topping *cough peanut butter cough* and enjoy!

Nutritional Stats
Per muffin

124 Calories  /  4g Fat  /  20g Carbs  /  3g Fiber  /  10g Sugar  /  4g Protein

Food for Thought

Do you prep your meals for the week on Sunday?

Foodie Friday: Pumpkin Fest and a Giveaway Winner!

Did you know that October 26th is National Pumpkin Day? Although, based on what I’ve seen on pinterest, I’m pretty sure once October 1st hit, everyday has been National Pumpkin Day for many. I’ve definitely had fun playing with some pumpkin recipes this week so I have a couple for you today.

Pumpkin Protein Souffle with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling & Frosting

Serves 1
Adapted from Wish & Whimsy

Ingredients

Souffle
2 egg whites
1 packet Perfect Fit Protein [or 1 scoop of your favorite protein powder]
1/4 cup pumpkin puree [not pumpkin pie filling; I use Libby’s]
1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk [I use Almond Breeze]
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Filling & Topping
1 cinnamon cream cheese Laughing Cow wedge, divided*
1/2 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine all souffle ingredients in a bowl and stir until well combined. Pour into a greased ramekin. Cut your cream cheese wedge in half and place half of it in the middle of your souffle. It will sink a bit, so be careful as you transfer your souffle to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes.

While this is baking, prepare your frosting by heating the other half of the cream cheese wedge with the almond milk. Microwave for about 10 seconds just to warm everything up and to help it smooth out. Mix it together until smooth.

Once your souffle is finished baking, pour your frosting over top and enjoy!

*If you can’t find Laughing Cow Cinnamon Cream Cheese, you can sub 1 tbsp low fat cream cheese & 1 tsp cinnamon. But ask your grocery store to get this in stock immediately because it is just. that. good.

Yummm! Look at all of that delicious cream cheese pumpkiny goodness! You won’t believe the amazing stats on this..

Nutritional Stats
Per souffle with filling & frosting

222 Calories  /  5g Fat  /  10g Carbs  /  4g Fiber  /  3g Sugar  /  35g Protein

This is the perfect post-workout breakfast packed with all of that protein! And because I just couldn’t get enough pumpkin, I have another tasty treat for you.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Greek Yogurt Dip

Serves 1

Ingredients
1/4 cup vanilla greek yogurt
1/8 cup pumpkin puree [not pumpkin pie filling; I use Libby’s]
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tbsp mini chocolate chips

Directions
Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and get ready to dip! I love slicing up apples to dip in this, but you can also double the recipe and eat it by itself as a great post-workout snack!

Nutritional Info
Per serving

94 Calories  /  2g Fat  /  14g Carbs  /  1g Fiber  /  12g Sugar  /  5g Protein

Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to Paris for winning the coconut oil giveaway!

Paris says :
I tweeted about the giveaway on twitter and followed Barr and Table and Tropical Traditions!

Please email me at Brittany@BarrAndTable.com with your shipping address by Monday, October 29th, at 11:59 PM EST to get your prize!

Foodie Friday: A Sarah Fit Breakfast

Something very strange has happened in my house this week. We’ve gone out for dinner almost every night! And suddenly I realized I didn’t have an awesome recipe to share for my Foodie Friday post.

I turned to my trusty friend, Pinterest, for an awesome breakfast idea (since I’m also out of all of my breakfast staples) and came across this bad boy. Breakfast quinoa? Carrot cake? Done.

It was a great decision. Such a fast prep and so tasty, I’m glad I have extra shredded carrots and quinoa ready for breakfast tomorrow too! I even went ahead and figured out the nutritional info so hopefully you’ll feel even more inclined to make this right away! And then head on over to SarahFit.com and thank Sarah for her delicious creation 🙂

Nutritional Stats
Per serving

280 Calories  /  8g Fat  /  46g Carbs  /  6g Fiber  /  11g Sugar  /  8g Protein

Giveaway Winner!

Congrats to Jennifer Shaw on winning a case of tortilla popchips! Please email me at Brittany@BarrAndTable.com with your address so I can forward it over to the wonderful people at popchips!

Jennifer Shaw says : September 28, 2012 at 2:14 pm
I love pop chips! I can’t wait to try tortilla, looks yummy!

And finally, a huge thanks to popchips for being an incredible FitBloggin’ sponsor and a great company to work with for this giveaway!

*Winner has until 11:59pm EST on Sunday, 10/7/12, to respond. If I don’t hear back from you, I will be choosing a new winner.

Foodie Friday: Chocolate Protein Oats

I already have my breakfast planned for tomorrow.

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and while this week I’ve been on a protein pancake kick, I’m ready to start the weekend with my favorite breakfast; chocolate protein oats.

More specifically, Coach’s Oats. I’ve recently been introduced to these little lovely bites and don’t ever want to go back to regular oats again. These oats aren’t rolled, but they aren’t steel cut either. They do, however, have that same texture and bite as steel cut oats, which is my favorite, but cook in no time like rolled oats!

Coach’s Oats are prepared in an entirely new way. The groats are toasted to bring the natural sugars to the surface of the oat, then cracked into small pieces. This patented Cracked n’ Toasted™ process means that Coach’s Oats are never mushy, always naturally delicious and cook in just 3 to 5 minutes on a stovetop or in the microwave.

Chocolate Protein Oats

Serves 1

Ingredients
3 egg whites
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup almond milk (Blue Diamond Unsweetened Vanilla is my favorite!)
1/2 banana, mashed
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/3 cup oats (Coach’s Oats are my favorite, of course!)

Optional Toppings
1/2 tbsp nut butter (I love Earth Balance Coconut Peanut Spread)
Fruit – figs, banana, strawberries, blueberries, etc
1 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
Sprinkling of ground cinnamon

Directions
Heat a small pot over medium to medium-high heat. Add your 3 egg whites and cook through, mashing into small pieces. Once cooked, put the egg whites in a bowl off to the side.

Turn heat to high and add water, almond milk, mashed banana, cinnamon, cocoa powder, and oats to the pot. Stir to incorporate everything and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn the head to low and stir until everything has just about come together. For the last minute of cooking, add your egg whites back in and stir well.

Pour everything into a bowl and top with your favorite toppings. Enjoy!

I immediately top mine with peanut butter.. I truly believe melty peanut butter is the best thing in the world.

Speak Up!

What are your favorite oatmeal toppings? Do you change them up or always reach for the same thing?

Foodie Friday: Coconut Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

As a food lover, and more specifically, a sweets lover, I’m always trying to find ways to create healthier options of my favorite foods. So when Nathan looked at our 2-day-old ciabatta bread and asked me to make bread pudding, I gladly accepted the challenge!

Now, if we’re really talking about healthifying, I would have preferred a wheat-based bread.. maybe a whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread. Mmmmm!

But these are minor details.

Coconut Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

Make 9 – 3″ squares
Adapted from sweetlab

Ingredients
1/2 stale ciabatta loaf, cubed
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 egg
3 egg whites
1 – 13.66oz can lite coconut milk
3/4 cup unsweetend vanilla almond milk (Or other low- or non-fat milk)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (Optional – I opted not to add as I was using vanilla almond milk)
2 tbsp agave (Or another form of natural sweetener)
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 – 1/2 cup dark chocolate or semi-sweet chips
Pinch of salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread shredded coconut over a sheet pan and toast in the oven for about 8 minutes, or until golden brown.

In a large bowl, mix egg, egg whites, coconut milk, almond milk, vanilla extract, agave, cinnamon and salt until well combined. Add in the cubed bread and half of the toasted coconut. Toss until everything is evenly and well coated.

Grease a 9×9″ pan and scatter a small amount of chocolate chips, about 2-3 tbsp, along the bottom of the pan. Add in half of your bread and coconut mixture. Top that with half of the leftover coconut and about 3/4 of the chocolate chips. Create another layer on top of that of the rest of bread and coconut mixture, topped with the last of the chocolate chips and coconut. Allow to rest in the pan for about 15 minutes.

While resting, preheat oven to 325°F. Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean, turning halfway through. Once done, allow to rest about 15 minutes to let everything settle.

Or dig right in and burn your mouth.. it might be worth it! 😉 But don’t say I didn’t warn you!

If you like it a little sweeter, feel free to drizzle more agave or other sweetener on top. And if you’re feeling extra fancy, throw a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on there!

Speak Up!

What’s your favorite bready type of dessert? Are you a bread pudding fan? I never was until just a few years ago.. now I can’t get enough!