ITALIAN ORZO SALAD

This fresh pasta salad is the perfect side dish to any meal! I came up with this recipe using some of my family's favorite ingredients, and I try to use everything fresh and organic when possible.

Ingredients:

• 1 box of organic orzo pasta
• 2 cups of spinach
• Handful of fresh basil leaves
• 1 cucumber
• 1/4 of a red onion diced
• 1 cup of feta cheese
• Italian seasoning (oregano)
• Balsamic vinegar or 365 brand Balsamic Vinegearette 

Recipe:

• Bring water to boil, and cook box of orzo
• Petite Dice 1/4 of a red onion 
• Cut up cucumber into small pieces
• Rip apart washed spinach and basil into small pieces (can also try cutting)
• When pasta is done cooking, rinse with cool water to avoid sticking. Add pasta to a large bowl, and combine with all of the ingredients. Add the dressing and cheese last. Chill before serving.  

BUFFALO CAULIFLOWER BITES

Try this recipe as a healthier alternative to wings! It's super easy + you can bring your own taste to it by selection which sauce you would like to garnish with! 

Ingredients:

• One head of organic cauliflower
• 1 cage-free egg
• Pink salt + pepper
• 1 garlic clove
• Organic or Natural Buffalo Sauce (I like Tessemae's Mild Buffalo Sauce)
• 1 -2 cups of almond flour

Recipe:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and prepare baking sheet with parchment paper(optional)
• Wash and separate the cauliflower into smaller florets
• Mix 1 egg with dash of pepper, pink salt + garlic in bowl
• Add 1 cup of almond flour to large plate and spread out
• Dip each floret one-by-one into the egg mixture and then cover with flour (might need to add more flour to the plate depending on how much cauliflower you have)
• Add florets to baking sheet and cook for 25-30 minutes
• Let bites cool, then garnish with your favorite sauce. I use Tessemae's All Natural Mild Buffalo Sauce because the ingredients are good quality, but Whole Foods has some good options I have used as well! 

Serve with blue cheese and celery for the ultimate tailgating snack or party app! 

FIT LASAGNA (KALE + GROUND TURKEY)

Do you crave a good Italian meal, but dread the calories? I feel your pain. Fall is the season of football, food and more food! So, in trying to stick to my meal plan while at home I came up with a guiltless organic lasagna recipe! Pair it with a great glass of red wine and you've got yourself a nice little dinner for a Wednesday ;) 

SHOPPING LIST:

-Organic Lasagna Noodles

-1 container of Ricotta cheese (part-skim)

-1 block of almond cheese

-Fresh basil

-Fresh oregano

-1 garlic clove

-1 jar of basil marinara sauce (or your sauce of choice)

-1 lb of organic ground white turkey meat

-olive oil

-Himalayan sea salt

-pepper

-lemon juice

-1 egg

-handful of fresh kale

RECIPE:

-Cook package of noodles to al dente (or as package reads), cool with cold water prior to laying on pan.

-Simultaneously Brown 1lb of ground turkey with olive oil as non-stick remedy, 1 garlic clove, fresh basil, fresh oregano, pink salt, and pepper.

-Once meat is cooked mix in the marinara to create a meat sauce

-Preheat oven to 375f

To Make Ricotta Mixture:

Mix one container of ricotta with one egg, pink salt, pepper, and lemon juice.

To prepare pan:

-Layer bottom of pan with olive oil and thin layer of sauce

-Then add 3-4 noodles to cover pan

-Add on meat sauce mixture

-Add ricotta mixture

-Add bits of kale

-Add fresh almond mozzarella or regular organic  mozzarella to cover

-Add next layer of noodles and REPEAT the order!

On the last layer of noodles add the extra sauce and meat sauce and some fresh almond mozzarella & basil!

Cook for 35-40 minutes, check to see progress. Bon Appetit and enjoy that glass of red wine because you earned it! 

ASIAN LETTUCE WRAPS with CAULIFLOWER RICE

These Asian Lettuce Wraps have it all, except MSG!! The perfect way to enjoy a favorite dish without the chemical overload. These wraps are easy to make & can be stored for a few days for lunch or leftovers!

INGREDIENTS:

Cauliflower Lettuce Wraps

• organic chicken breast (I like the Applegate pre-cut)
• ¼ cup chopped red onion
• 1 bottle of 365 Organic Teriyaki Sauce
• 1 small bowl of broccoli
• 1 small bowl of edamame
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 bag of tri-colored shredded carrots
• 1 bowl of pineapple
• 1 small bowl of tri-colored peppers cut up or frozen organic pre-cut peppers
• 1 cauliflower or 1 bag of frozen 365 cauliflower rice
• pink salt
• pepper
• plant-based butter

DIRECTIONS:

(If you are using frozen cauliflower rice skip to next paragraph!) If you are using a whole cauliflower instead of the frozen you will need to pound out the rice first. The easiest way it to dismantle the leaves and the head of the cauliflower and add the remaining flourets to a food processor. You may have to repeat this process a few times to get all of the florets compacted.

Add the cauliflower rice to a large pan on the stove with plant-based butter, sauté for 5-7 minutes. In a second pan add lemon juice & garlic, pink salt/pepper and cook cut up chicken breast (I use the pre-cut organic Applegate chicken). Once chicken is cooking for around 5 minutes add teriyaki sauce, and small pineapple cubes. Cook for another 5 minutes. In pan with rice add in broccoli, unshelled edamame, chopped red onion, and peppers. Let veggies get soft & then combine chicken mixture with veggie/rice mixture and add more teriyaki sauce.

Wash and separate romaine lettuce leaves to use as shell. Add the stir-fry mixture to the individual lettuce wraps and top with the raw tri-colored carrots for a crispy finish! Enjoy!

ORGANIC CHOPPED CAESAR SALAD

This salad is a great compliment to any summer BBQ! I had a weird craving for caesar salad (something I never eat), so I decided to come up with my own healthier version.

Ingredients:

(I try to buy all organic & non-gmo ingredients)

-1/2 box of ditalini pasta

-bag of organic croutons

-2 heads of romaine lettuce

-1 bag of mixed greens or spinach

-3 pieces of turkey bacon or uncured bacon bits

-2 cups of red cabbage

-1 bottle of Annie’s Naturals Organic Caesar Dressing

-1 container of pre-shredded parmesan cheese or half block of parmesan to shred

-Shredded chicken breast-optional (pictured without chicken)

Directions:

-Cook 1/2 of the box of ditalini pasta and run under cold water when straining to prevent noodles from sticking

-Cook 3 pieces of turkey bacon on stove top until extra crispy and then dice or break into small crumbs (can substitute with uncured bacon bits).

**If you are adding chicken, cook 1-2 chicken breasts on stove top with olive oil, 1 garlic clove, pink salt, pepper & splash of lemon juice. Once cooled, cut and shred to smaller pieces.

-Mix the spinach and greens with 2 heads of chopped up romaine, add 2 cups of chopped up red cabbage. Combine the salad mixture with 1 bag of croutons, bacon crumbs and ditalini pasta. Top with dressing, and let sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to cool. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese just before serving.

ALMOND FLOUR PANCKAES

This recipe is so quick and easy, even if you’re on-the-go in the morning you can have time to whip these up! This recipe is gluten free and dairy free.

Recipe:

-1 1/2 cup almond flour

-3 cage free organic eggs

-1 TBS plant based butter

-1/2 cup of vanilla almond milk or water (could add up to 1 cup depending on desired consistency)

-ground cinnamon

-optional fresh fruit & organic maple syrup for toppings

Directions:

Mix together 1 1/2 cups almond flour, 3 eggs and up to 1 cup of almond milk or water. I prefer to use a Pyrex measuring pitcher and whisk to mix together. Add TBS of butter to stove top pan and heat up. Once heated, carefully pour on the mixed-up batter. Make sure to flip pancakes with a spatula a few times to evenly cook. Top with cinnamon and blueberries or strawberries with organic maple syrup. Enjoy!

**If you can eat dairy could also add mini dark or milk chocolate chips to batter for chocolate chip pancakes.**

ALMOND-VANILLA CUPCAKES

These cupcakes are organic and no artificial colorings were used for the sprinkles or frosting!

Every year, 15 million pounds of artificial food dyes are used in U.S. food manufacturing plants. Let’s get real, if I can make my own food coloring from scratch at home these big food companies can certainly find a way to get it done at their state-of-the-art plants without breaking the bank. Artificial dyes have been linked to numerous health issues. In animal studies dyes have caused tumors and cancer, and it is said that yellow #5 causes hyperactivity in children. So, we made our own coloring using safe and organic products.

My two-year-old saw the new minions movie this week, so this recipe was a direct request from him. I’m a cook not a baker, so with that said, I think we did an okay job 

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cup almond flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp pink salt

1 cup organic sugar

1/2 cup or organic, grass fed or plant-based butter

2 large organic/cage-free eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup of vanilla almond milk

Miss Jones Organic Vanilla Frosting

1 tsp turmeric powder

Handful of yellow carrots

1 bag of  mini organic dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup water

DIRECTIONS:

Combine cake ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Stir with an electronic mixer or by hand until batter is thick and there are no clumps. Pre-heat the oven to 350 and full cupcake pan with cupcake wrappers of your choice. Fill holders 2/3 of the way with batter using a spatula or spoon. Wipe any excess batter off the pan and place in oven for 14-18 minutes. Let cupcakes cook until golden…stick a toothpick in to check if done, if it comes out clean you’re good to go!

Frosting:

In a food processor or small blender add 1/2 cup of water, handful of yellow carrots and 1 tsp of turmeric powder. Blend until smooth. Add mixture to stove top in small pan and cook on low for 10 minutes. Pour the juice from the pan and TBS of the mixture into a bowl with the vanilla frosting. Stir until the mixture is smooth.

Remove cupcakes from pan and let cool for several minutes before frosting.

To add the minion facial features use two dark chocolate chips as the eyes along with vanilla frosting, and you can melt a handful of chips in the microwave for about 2 minutes and use a toothpick to draw on the rest of the face. All of the sprinkles shown are from the Miss Jones Vanilla Frosting pack and are made with natural colors (turmeric, beet root, spirulina and paprika).

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