Category Archives: Snacks & Appetizers

Broccoli Bites

Food, Game Day Recipes, Recipes, Snacks & Appetizers, Vegetarian, , , , , ,

Going green for tonight’s St. Patty’s festivities! That’s right, we’re finally going out for St. Patrick’s day. We have an overnight sitter and we’re ready to party! Back to the broccoli bites. We’re having some friends over before our big night on the town, and I needed a quick and easy snack. These are not only festive, but really good. They’re full of veggies and make a great healthy snack. I think I may just need to make some extras for a snack later this week.

broccoli bites

did-you-know

Did you know broccoli contains high levels of both calcium and vitamin K, both of which are important for bone health and prevention of osteoporosis.  This is great news if you’re not a fan of milk.  Click here for more great health benefits from broccoli.

broccoli bites

Ingredients

  • 1 medium head of broccoli, cut into very small pieces
  • 1 small carrot , peeled and shredded
  • 1 garlic clove, pressed
  • 3/4 cup cheddar cheese
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup of panko or bread crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  • Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Steam broccoli pieces for a few minutes, until they turn a nice bright green. Let cool.
  • In a large bowl combine all ingredients and mix well.
  • Shape into bite size broccoli balls.
  • Bake on parchment paper for about 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

nutritional fact - broccoli bite

Stove Top Popcorn

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For me, Sunday night is tv night.  And who doesn’t love eating popcorn when you’re watching your favorite show. Growing up my mom always made popcorn on the stove top. Now most make popcorn in the microwave. These microwave bags of popcorn are loaded with harmful chemicals. Making popcorn on the stove is easy, inexpensive, and much better for you since you control the ingredients.

popcorn

did-you-know

Microwave popcorn contains a chemical called diacetyl. This chemical is added to give the popcorn it’s golden color and distinctive microwave popcorn smell. Microwave popcorn also contains a coating, which breaks down when heated called perfluorooctanoic (PFOA). It has been identified as a “likely carcinogen” by the Environmental Protection Agency. I don’t know what this stuff is, but I definitely know I don’t want to eat it!

Directions

  1. Heat a large pot with 3 tablespoons of oil (olive oil, coconut, grape seed, your choice) over medium heat. 
  2. Add 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels and cover with lid. Popcorn will begin to pop in a few minutes.
  3. Cook until kernels slowly stop popping. About 4-6 minutes.
  4. Top with your favorite ingredients. I like parmesan cheese and sea salt.

 

Cheddar Vegetable Chowder

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Between work, the gym, and dance classes for my daughter, it’s tough to find time during the week to make dinner. So on Sundays I like to make a few meals to prepare for the busy week.  I try to keep them simple and healthy. You may want to double this one though, since most of it was gone by lunch.

vegetable chowder

vegetable chowder 02

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 2 carrots, finely chopped or shredded
  • 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, pressed
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth (low sodium)
  • 2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 1/2 cup of water
  • 2/3 cup of milk (I used almond coconut)
  • 2 cups broccoli, chopped into small pieces
  • 1 cup of cheddar cheese

Directions

  1.  In a large pot heat olive oil and add onion, carrots, and celery. For easy prep I used the food processer attachment from my immersion blender to chop this veggies quickly. Saute veggies for a few minutes and add pressed garlic and cook for 2 more minutes. Add salt and pepper.
  2. Add vegetable or chicken broth and potatoes and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender.
  3. In a small bowl mix water and flour and add to soup. Bring to a slight boil and heat for a few minutes until thickened.
  4. Add milk and broccoli. Cook until broccoli is tender about 5 minutes.
  5. Add cheese and stir until melted. I used my immersion blender to make the soup a little smoother, but this step is not needed.

nutrional facts - veg chowder

Roasted Chickpeas

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Perfect guilt free Friday night snack. Roasted chickpeas also make a great afternoon snack when you are craving something salty. They are much healthier than grabbing something at the vending machine and it only cost me about $2 to make this batch.

Roasted Chick Peas 01

Roasted Chick Peas 02

Ingredients

  • 2 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • dash of garlic powder
  • dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
  • dash of sea salt

Directions

  • Pre heat oven to 400 degrees.  After draining and rinsing the chickpeas, place them in a single layer on a paper towel and dry by layering another paper towel overtop.
  • Place dry chickpeas in a bowl and mix in olive oil, and spices, and stir.
  • Place chickpeas in a single layer on a baking sheet with sides since they need to be shaken a little during cooking.
  • Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, shaking the baking sheet about every 10 minutes. They do brown quickly so keep an eye them during the last 10 minutes of baking.

nutrional facts - chick peas

TGIF!

Thin Sliced Roasted Potatoes

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February is National Potato Lovers Month!  To celebrate I made my favorite roasted potato recipe.  These are easy to make and are a great side dish with almost any meal. Crispy and delicious, you’ll keep going back for more.

potatoes

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs potatoes (any kind will work, I like red or yukon gold)
  • Drizzle of olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning
  • Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. 
  2. Cut potatoes in thin slices and spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. (I use a stone which I feel works best). Drizzle with olive oil and steak seasoning.
  3. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are nice and crispy.
  4. Top with parmesan cheese.

Mexican Twice Baked Sweet Potato

Food, Main Dishes, Mexican, Recipes, Sides, Snacks & Appetizers, Vegetarian, , , , , ,

I’ve never been a huge fan of sweet potatoes…Boy did this recipe change my mind.  These aren’t just good, they’re amazing, oh and they’re healthy too!

Mexican Twice Baked Potatoes

Recipe from Pinch of Yum.

Ingredients

  • 2 or 3 medium sweet potatoes
  • 1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can of corn, drained, I like shoepeg, or fresh off the cob is the best
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1/2 cup red pepper, diced
  • 1 small jalapeño, diced (if you like spicy)
  • 1 clove of garlic, pressed
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • sprinkle of cumin
  • 1 ounce light cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup of greek yogurt or sour cream
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • handful of chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1/2 cup of cheese, I used cheddar, you could use Monterey Jack, Colby… anything really


Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and baked sweet potatoes for about an hour, until soft. Check by poking with a fork.
  2. Heat a skillet (cast iron is the best) over medium high heat. Do not add any oil or butter, and add corn to pan. Sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.  Do not stir.  Let the corn roast for a few minutes before stirring. Roast for about 10 minutes until nice and brown. Set aside in a bowl with black beans.
  3.  Heat a tablespoon of oil and saute onions,  peppers, and garlic. Set aside.
  4.  Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.  Cut sweet potatoes in half and scoop out flesh. Leave a little lining of the flesh inside to help keep the shape of the sweet potato.
  5.  In a large bowl mix sweet potatoes, cream cheese, yogurt or sour cream, and mix using a hand mixer.
  6.  Careful mix black beans, roasted corn, sauteed onions, peppers, garlic, and cilantro into the sweet potato mix.
  7.  Scoop the filling into sweet potato skins. Top with cheese and broil for 5 minutes, until cheese is nice and bubbly. I had filling leftover, so I put it in a casserole dish, topped with cheese and baked.

nutrional facts - mexican twice baked potato

Yummy!

Black Bean Salsa

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Another healthy alternative for any event.  Black bean salsa is a great, low calorie finger food to snack on and if you’re lucky enough to have any left over, it also makes a great topping for fish.

Black Bean Salsa

Ingredients

  • Can of black beans rinsed and drained
  • Chopped red pepper
  • One small jalapeno diced
  • One small red onion diced
  • Shoe peg corn
  • Fresh cilantro
  • Palm full of cumin
  • Balsamic dressing

Wonton Wrapper Cheese Raviolis

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This week I am cleaning out my fridge and pantry. I had some leftover wonton wrappers and some ricotta cheese. So I came up with these raviolis for dinner.  They also make a great finger appetizer since they crisp up so nicely in the oven, just serve with a small bowl of tomato sauce or pesto to dip.

Cheese Ravioli

Ingredients

  • wonton wrappers (found in the refrigerated produce section)
  • ricotta cheese
  • handful of  shredded parmesan cheese (next time I want to try with goat cheese)
  • 5-6 fresh basil leaves or chopped spinach leaves
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
  • dash of nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • your favorite tomato sauce

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl mix cheeses, basil or spinach, garlic, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
  3. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. Lay wonton flat on baking sheet and add about 1 teaspoon of the cheese mixture. Fold wrapper into a triangle and seal edges with water (I just dipped my finger in a bowl of water and smoothed around edges).
  4. Brush ravioli with olive oil and sprinkle with some parmesan cheese.
  5. Bake for about 15 minutes or until crispy. Watch, they brown up quick.
  6. Serve on a plate with sauce, or on a large serving tray with a small bowl of sauce to dip for an appetizer.

Enjoy!

Buffalo Cauliflower “Wings”

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Looking for a healthy option to replace the traditional Super Bowl wings?  These buffalo cauliflower “wings” are surprisingly good and easy to make.  Kitchen tested by husband, who loves chicken wings, gobbled them up!

Cauliflower Wings

Ingredients

  • 1 head cauliflower, washed and trimmed into bite size pieces
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup of flour
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup buffalo sauce
  • 1 tablespoon of butter, melted
  • Assorted veggies and bleu cheese or ranch dressing for dipping


Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
  2. In a large bowl, whisk buttermilk and flour, and garlic until smooth.
  3. Carefully add cauliflower to the bowl and toss to coat with mixture. (I just used my hands)
  4. Place cauliflower in a single layer on a baking sheet. You may need to use two baking sheets. Bake for about 17 minutes. Keep watching and remove if starting to brown.
  5. Mix melted butter and buffalo sauce.
  6. Remove cauliflower from the oven and pour buffalo sauce over the pieces. I tried to gently move the cauliflower around with a spatula to coat with sauce.
  7. Return cauliflower back to the oven and bake for another 6-10 minutes. Let cool and serve with bleu cheese dip and assorted veggies.

Enjoy!