Cranberry orange & walnut whole wheat muffins

I actually dreamt these muffins into existence. The other night, I had a dream about making these muffins in great detail, from the orange zest to the cranberries and walnuts. Funny thing is though - I have no idea what prompted my dream. I started looking for a recipe and was having a hard time finding one that had all the criteria I wanted - mainly the whole wheat flour component.

Finally, I hopped on Katie's blog, and of course the very first muffin recipe that comes up under her tag is for the exact muffin I've been searching for! Now she posted this back in January, so maybe its been hiding out in the recesses of my mind just waiting to surface in a dream so that I would make it! Either way, I'm glad I did, this is an extremely healthy and very tasty recipe.

I made a few variations/substitutions to Katie's recipe:

* Used walnuts instead of pecans

* Omitted the flax seed (I couldn't find it and didn't feel like searching too hard)

* Since cranberries aren't in season I used dried cranberries and plumped them up in water prior to mixing into the batter

Cranberry Orange Walnut Whole Wheat Muffins

Adapted from Good Things Catered

Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup oat flour - Just throw some oats into your food processor to make this yourself!
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
zest of 1 large orange
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup apple sauce
1/2 cup skim milk
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 Tbsp honey
1 large egg white
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup fresh cranberries (or frozen, or dried plumped up in water)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin tins
-In a large bowl, add sugars and applesauce and mix until very well combined.
-Mixing while incorporating, add milk, juice, honey, egg, and vanilla.
-Mix to combine well.
-Sift flours into large bowl.
-Add baking powder, cinnamon, salt and orange zest.
-Fold dry ingredients into wet.
-Fold dry ingredients in until half way combined, about 6 full strokes.
-Add cranberries and walnuts and fold in. (Batter should be just barely combined)
-Spoon batter into muffin tins
-Place into oven and bake until toothpick inserted into center of muffins comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes.

Not your Mama's Salmon Patties

Growing up Salmon Patties were always one of those groan inducing meals (as in - eww Mom, really Salmon Patties?). Well looking back, salmon patties really weren't all that bad, they were just easy to pick on, kind of like meatloaf.

Turns out Joe had them growing up too, and similar to my family, they were made using canned salmon. He wasn't thrilled when I told him what we were having for dinner, especially when I told him it was a healthy recipe too. Turned out he loved them - it does help that there is no canned salmon involved in the dish : ) So much so that as I am posting these a week later and he saw the photo on the computer he reiterated how much he liked them!

I loved this recipe not only because it was delicious, but yes it was healthy as well AND a great way to stretch your dollar! Because the base of the patties are potatoes, 1 serving of salmon is more than enough for two people.

Salmon and Potato Cakes with Mixed Greens

***Recipe note - I reduced the amount of oil used in the original recipe and substituted 2% milk for the heavy cream.***

Original recipe - from myrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoons vegetable oil (for frying)
• 2 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
• salt
• 1/2 onion, grated
• .5 pound skinless salmon fillets
• pepper
• 3/4 cups water
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 scallions, white bulbs only, chopped
• 2 tablespoons dill
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon red- or white-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 pound mixed salad greens (about 4 quarts)
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges (optional)

Preparation

1. Brush the bottom of a large deep frying pan with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Put the potatoes in the pan and sprinkle with salt. Top with the onion and then the salmon. Sprinkle with another layer of salt and pepper over the salmon. Add the water to the pan, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the salmon and potatoes are done, about 15 minutes.

2. Remove the salmon and flake. Drain the potatoes well and put in a medium bowl. Add the milk and mash, leaving the potatoes fairly chunky. Add the salmon, more pepper to taste, the scallions, and half of the dill. Form the mixture into four cakes.

3. Wipe out the frying pan. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and heat over moderately high heat. Add half the salmon cakes to the pan and brown well on both sides, about 5 minutes in all. Drain on paper towels and repeat with another tablespoon oil and the remaining salmon cakes.

4. In a medium glass or stainless-steel bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar, and the remaining dill and salt and pepper to taste. Add the olive oil slowly, whisking. Add the greens, toss, and put on plates. Top each salad with two salmon cakes and a lemon wedge.

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

My friend Melissa told me about this recipe from Hungry Girl last year and I've been waiting for cooler weather to make it. Well its not quite cool, but it is September, I wore a jean jacket today and footballs on, so as far as I'm concerned, its time for pumpkin stuff. I think I'm in good company too, since I've seen quite a bit of pumpkin popping up on blogs the last week or two. This is likely to be the first of many pumpkin recipes over the next month on here.

I haven't tried pumpkin much in savory dishes, but this recipe did not disappoint. It actually was surprisingly similar to chili, but with the rich pumpkin flavor it was so delicious. Pumpkin is a fantastic way to make a soup rich and creamy without adding a lot of fat.

I altered the recipe slightly from Hungry Girl, namely adding double the amount of pumpkin to the soup. I think this really contributed to the rich creamy texture so I recommend making the same change.

Also, the original recipe called for a tablespoon of chili powder for a serving of 4. I like my food spicy, but that seemed like a ridiculous amount so I only added a teaspoon and thought it was well flavored.

I will definitely make this again, and the only other thing I would change would be to try it with a pinch of cinnamon in it.

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

Adapted from Hungry Girl

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil

pinch salt

pinch pepper
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
4 cups Fat Free broth (chicken or vegetable)
28 oz. can pure pumpkin
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup corn
3/4 cup salsa
Optional toppings: shredded reduced-fat or fat-free cheese, and reduced-fat or fat free sour cream

Directions:
Heat olive oil in soup pan. Add garlic, salt and pepper and saute for a few minutes. Then add chili powder and cumin, and stir for one minute. Add broth to the spices, and bring to a simmer. Add pumpkin and mix well. Add the remaining ingredients and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. This soup can be served with a sprinkle of cheese and a little fat free sour cream on top. Serves 6

Mango & Jalapeno Shrimp Kebabs

As the summer is winding down (er...actually we are finally getting the weather we should have been getting in July...but technically its not summer anymore), I feel like I've exhausted mango salsa in our little household. I just have a really hard time NOT buying mango from the grocery store though because they are ONLY $1!!!

So I was trying to think of a different way to use it and decided to do kebabs. I love the taste of grilled pineapple so thought that grilling the mango along with jalapeno marinated shrimp would be a great combination (Jalapeno compliments of our herb garden!).

I served it over a bed of rice with black beans, cilantro and lime. The creaminess of the rice and sweetness of the mango were a great compliment to the spicy shrimp.



Mango & Jalapeno Shrimp Kebabs

12 shrimp
1/2 jalapeno (finely diced)
1 mango
1 lime
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt
pepper

*Combine the juice of the lime with olive oil in bowl. Add the jalapeno, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

*Toss the shrimp in the mixture and let marinate 30 minutes.

*Skewer the mango an shrimp, alternating.

*Grill on a hot grill, about 4 minutes on each side.

*Serve over a bed of rice. For the rice I just followed basic rice cooking directions, and added 1/2 can of black beans, cilantro and lime juice at the end.

Very tasty and healthy meal - enjoy!

Spaghetti with Chicken, Grape Tomatoes, Basil and Parmesan

I found this recipe on a Weight Watchers blog that I just discovered. I don't actually do Weight Watchers, but am always looking for healthy delicious recipes. This blog is chock full of them.

This also looked like a great way to use up some of my basil plant, other than making pesto. Our tiny city balcony doubles as an herb garden in the summer and has been very good to us - especially the basil plant.


So sad to think that this same amount of basil will cost me $3.99 in the winter.



Onto the recipe though, this was such a light and refreshing summer time meal. Also, I didn't tell Joe until AFTER that it was a Weight Watchers recipe : )

I followed the recipe from Gina's blog closely, however it is a possibility that I added a tiny bit more olive oil than this called for ; )

Cilantro & Lime Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Mango Salsa

One thing I've been making a lot of this summer is mango salsa. I love how well it goes with chicken and really any type of seafood. Usually I make it with avocado, but switched things up tonight since 1) the avocado I had was not ripe enough and 2) our jalapeno plant has finally produced!

I was worried that it would be too spicy and powerful, but the balance with the mango was perfect.

Lime and Cilantro Grilled Shrimp

12 pieces shrimp

1 lime

1 tbsp olive oil

1 handful cilantro leaves - chopped

salt

pepper

Whisk together the juice from the lime, olive oil, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Add the shrimp and let marinade up to a half hour.

Grill shrimp for 2-3 minutes on each side.

Mango Salsa

1 mango - chopped

1/2 jalapeno - diced finely

10 cherry tomatoes - chopped

1 scallion - chopped

1 handful cilantro leaves - chopped

1 lime

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp cumin

salt

Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, squeezing the lime juice over.

Let chill in the fridge for at least a half hour to allow to the flavors to marry.

Assemble the tacos, adding ingredients as desired. I added black beans and a little bit of cheese.

Very, very healthy and tasty summer meal - enjoy!

Chocolate Cheese Pots with Apple Slices

I've been making a real effort to cook a little lighter this year, so found this from my Cook's Library - Low Fat Cookbook. I had some leftover ricotta cheese so decided to give it a whirl.

I ended up using chocolate syrup instead of chocolate powder and adding more powdered sugar than they called for (it was a little too tangy) so it probably ended up higher in calories than originally anticipated, but still very healthy and still very tasty!

My measurements reflect what I added to make it sweeter.

Ingredients

serves 4

1 1/4 cups ricotta cheese
2/3 cup low fat plain yogurt
4 tbsp confectioner's sugar
4 tsp unsweetened cocoa
1/4 cup chocolate syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp dark rum
2 egg whites
fresh fruit for serving

- Mix the cheese and yogurt in a bowl, with the confectioner's sugar, both chocolates, vanilla extract and rum.

- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold into the mixture

- Pour them into your serving bowls and let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes * - I actually put them in the freezer for 15 minutes and they were great that way!

- Serve with fruit slices.

Salmon over Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Spinach

Another super healthy salmon recipe! Got this one from my girl Giada and it turned out great!

I followed the recipe pretty closely, however I did add a tiny bit of freshly grated parmesan to the pasta. I am definitely making this one again, and when I do, I will probably wilt the spinach a little bit before plating. I thought it would wilt more than it did from the pasta being placed on top of it then it did.

I was really worried about Joe liking whole wheat spaghetti so I didn't even mention it at first. He loved the whole meal and as he was finishing up his last bite, he asked me what I did to make the noodles brown : )

Salmon en Papillote

I heart (haha, get it) this dish for many reasons. First of all it is sooo healthy. Second, it is very simple but a really special presentation.

I was inspired to make it because, not one, but two chefs on the Food Network were making it this past Saturday (Tyler Florence and the Secrets of a Restaurant chef girl that looks like Guy Fieri). I made it before in a Viking class a couple of years ago and only made it once since then. Since I bought parchment paper this time, I think I will be making it more often.

The recipe I came up with was inspired by the salmon Tyler Florence put in his, the vegetables and shot of wine Guy girl put in hers, and the orzo I remember using in the Viking class.

The great thing about it is that you can choose what you have on hand to put in it.

Ingredients:

2 salmon filets
1 carrot (julienned)
1 red pepper (julienned)
4 scallions (cut crosswise into inch pieces)
1 lemon
olive oil
1/4 cup of dry white wine
1 cup orzo
2 cups chicken stock
salt
pepper
parchment paper

-Preheat your oven to 350 degrees

- Boil the chicken stock and cook the orzo until not quite al dente (only for about 3 minutes)

- Cut 2 heart shapes out of the parchment paper (this would be great for a Valentines dinner!):



- Let the orzo cool a bit (otherwise your paper becomes too wet to work with)

- Place the orzo down on one side of the heart first, add the salmon filet next.

- Season the salmon with salt and pepper

- Layer the lemon slices on top of the salmon



- Then add the julienned veggies, drizzle on some olive oil (you could omit this if you wanted to go really healthy) and season with a bit more salt and pepper.



- Fold over the other side of the heart and begin closing up the paper by folding over the sides. You want to make sure and get this folded very tightly so everything steams.

- At the very end, leave a little opening to pour in just a tiny shot of wine (don't pour too much or the taste will overpower everything).

- Finish folding and bake for about 15 - 20 minutes, until the salmon is cooked to 145 degrees.

Corn Salad

Corn Salad

I make this all the time, especially in the summer. It's a refreshing compliment to all the super starchy foods at Thanksgiving.

This is my mom's recipe : )

1 bag of frozen corn (better with a couple ears of fresh, grilled corn in the summer though)
1 can black beans
1 red bell pepper
1 tomato
4 or 5 scallions
cilantro
garlic salt
cumin
ground black pepper
red wine vinegar
olive oil

Chop the tomato, bell pepper, scallions and cilantro. Mix together in a bowl with the corn and black beans (rinse these first). Mix in a few shakes of the garlic salt and cumin, a pinch or two of black pepper and a few splashes of the vinegar and olive oil.

Cover the bowl and let sit in the fridge for 1 - 4 hours. The longer it sits the better it tastes!