Orange Greensicle Smoothie

I just made this today because I had coconut milk and greens that I had to use up, but I had forgotten that when I made this a few weeks ago, I said to myself, "This is my new favorite smoothie!"  Then, I didn't make it again.  Well, when I drank this, I immediately remembered that and said, "I have to post this one so I don't forget!"

Make it! Make it! Make it!  This is the best green smoothie I have ever had!!!  Really, I'm not lying.

Okay, so here are the ingredients - I doubled it this morning and it made 4 small cups - enough so I could drink one and then put the other three in the freezable ball jars so that I can put them in my lunch and Atzin's lunch.  This method with the ball jars works really well.  I tried it out a couple weeks ago and I had a smoothie that was just right for my afternoon workout, I had a smoothie for lunch, etc.  By mid day or early afternoon, this is melted and ready to shake and drink! (I digress ... back to the ingredients....)

(This is the doubled version I made this morning which makes the 4 small cups or 2 large ones)

2 medium frozen bananas
1/2 cup coconut milk
4 cups mixed greens or kale (I know, this sounds like a lot, but it really works! And it's okay.)
1/4 cup raw cashews
2 medium oranges
1/4 to 1/2 cup almond milk (Depends on the consistency that you want).

Notice there is no sweetener added to this smoothie - you don't need one.  The bananas and oranges are enough.  The frozen bananas and cashews help to give it a really creamy texture.  You won't be disappointed!  This is so good! And if you don't drink dairy, like I rarely do nowadays, this green smoothie can replace that milk in the morning so you make sure you get your calcium and many other added vitamins and minerals you get from the kale and other fruits.

Directions: Put it all in your blender, except the almond milk.  Blend it up, adding the almond milk as desired.

What are you waiting for?  Go...go make it!

Chicken Marbella

I absolutely love this dish.  It is so flavorful, with a hint of sweet, and the combination of the pitted prunes and green olives add some amazing flavor.  It's a slightly altered "healthified" version inspired by the Silver Palate recipe.  So here is what I do:

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 cup pitted prunes, halved
2 cups green olives
1/2 cup raw honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup capers
2 TBS apple cider vinegar
2 TBS minced fresh garlic
2 TBS dried oregano
3 bay leaves
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh minced parsley

1. Cube the chicken breast
2. In a separate bowl, mix all the other ingredients.
3. Add the chicken and let it marinade for a few hours in the fridge.
4. Place in a 13 by 9 inch baking dish
5. Cover and Bake for 40-50 minutes

What I would do with this dish to make it easier, you can prep it ahead of time.  Make your marinade and put the chicken with the marinade in a zip lock freezer bag.  You can leave it in the freezer until you are ready to use it.  I intended to do that this time, make it double and put half in the freezer for next time, but I didn't have enough capers and olives so I only made one batch to be used immediately.  This made a lot, we had enough for dinner and lunches the next day.  It goes fast because it is so yummy!

Almond Flour Muffins in a Che Mug

Of course, the key here is using an authentic Che mug from Cuba.  But if you don't have one, then any old mug will do.  Because I am going to shift to warm treats in the morning instead of smoothies, I wanted to experiment a bit with microwave muffins.  Here is another variation using almond flour.

1/4 cup almond flour

2 TBS flax seed meal

1 large egg

1/2 tsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1. Use coconut oil spray in your mug. 

2. Add the melted coconut oil to your mug.

3. Mix in the egg and then remaining dry ingredients. 

4. Microwave for 30 seconds, let it rest for 5 seconds, then microwave another 30 seconds.  

I just tried this out this morning, but I'm going to have this after my workout today as well.  

Enjoy and stay posted for more muffins in a mug ideas! 

Muffin in a Mug - even more convenient

Now that it's getting cooler, smoothies don't feel as comforting.  On a rainy day like today, it was muffin in a mug time!  Say  you are rushing to get your child's lunch packed, drive him or her to school, get ready yourself, etc.  It may seem too difficult even to pull out the cinnamon, baking powder, etc.  to make this.  So, I decided I needed a dry version that I could put in a baggie and keep in the fridge until I was ready to make it.  Then, all I need to do is add the coconut oil or butter and the egg.  So here is that variation:

Ingredients:

Use coconut oil spray in the mug
1 tsp of coconut butter or oil (melted)
1 egg
1/4 cup ground flax meal
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla powder
1 tsp coconut sugar

So, what I did is put the ground flax meal, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla powder, and coconut sugar in a baggie.  When I was ready to make them, all I had to do was spray the coconut oil in the mug, add the little 1/2 tsp of coconut butter melted, and the egg.  Then mix it up.  No pulling out all the other ingredients - I had them all in the baggie.  It worked fine substituting the dry vanilla powder and the coconut sugar instead of the liquid sweetener.  Have fun!

Bare Kitchen Cookies

2 1/2 cups almond four
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup agave or honey

This was panic day!  I was visiting my dad and as soon as the car pulls up he says to my sister, "Hay viene Leti!  Ha de traer galletas!"  I didn't have any with me that day!  The kitchen was empty, there were no egg, vanilla, nuts, etc.  Luckily, my dad regularly uses coconut oil, so there was some on hand.  My nephew Luke had almond flour on hand because he has been making treats using nut flours lately, and of course there was some agave I left behind last time I was there.  So I was able to throw these very basic ingredients together and it worked!  They were very good, simple, but very good.  If you have almost nothing - and lack a bunch of fancy ingredients, this will do just fine!

It's funny, recently my son said, "Mom, if I was on deserted island and had to be there with only 1 person, I would want to be with you.  You would be able to turn anything in to a meal!  You would grab some leaves and say, 'These leaves can be used for a raw whatever type of diet!'"

Tropical Cookies

I am so behind on my posts.  This week I really wanted to share this recipe because I love it.  I have made it twice this week.  My dad is staying with me right now and he always asks for his "galletitas."  Rolando loves these as well.  They are delicious and simple.  The "hardest" thing is having to roast the cashews.  Other than that, you just throw everything in there and mix it up!

So here is the recipe:

2 1/2 cups of almond flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup agave
1 TBS vanilla extract
1/2 cup of Lily's Dark Chocolate Baking Chips
1/2 cup of cashews, toasted and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper (I really love my air bake baking sheets)
3. In a large bowl, combine the almond flour, salt, and baking soda
4. In a medium bowl, combine the coconut oil, agave, and vanilla. (I have to confess I sometimes skip this step and they still turn out fine - if I'm really rushed, I just mix it all in one bowl.  However, the batter is better if you time to mix dry and wet ingredients separately first). 
5. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry and combine
6. Fold in the chocolate, cashews, and coconut.
7. Spoon the dough about 1 heaping TBS at a time onto the parchment lined sheet, pressing down with your hand to flatten
8. Bake for about 7-10 minutes. 

Yummy!  These are so good. My dad eats these and we still keep his blood sugar level way down!