Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Some days I am very, very happy to live in Texas. Today is one of those days. While Facebook is filled with posts of how ridiculously cold everyone else is in the rest of the country, I'm enjoying a bright, sunny, 70 degree day. Which is great because I've been craving my favorite dessert smoothie lately and it doesn't taste quite the same when you're bundled up in the blanket. 

The other day I mentioned how my New Year's resolution is to consciously include more greens in my diet. Last year I made a point to make sure I had greens at least once a day, this year I'm doubling that; it's my goal to consume greens at least twice a day. This smoothie is perfect for helping achieve that goal. After indulging in holiday treats for the last few weeks we have the tendency to quit treating ourselves cold turkey. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes that leads to back-sliding and never sticking with our goals. It's my belief that we should never deprive ourselves or stop treating ourselves. We work hard and life's too short to cut out all indulgences. Instead I like to find healthy ways to incorporate the things I love that way I can stick with my goals for the long haul. Whether you love dark, leafy greens like me or hate them, but know you should eat them, this smoothie is perfect for you. Assuming you love chocolate, bananas and peanut butter of course. 

I love this smoothie for many reasons:

1) It's chocolate.

2) It tastes like dessert.

3) It blends up in minutes.

4) It's filling and satisfying, yet gives you a burst of energy.

5) It's loaded with good stuff like magnesium, antioxidants, protein, healthy fats, potassium, fiber, iron and other important vitamins.

6) Its basically the perfect PMS smoothie (not that you have to be a girl or experiencing those symptoms to enjoy it).

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

• 1 frozen banana
• Giant handful of your favorite greens (I did a mix of spinach and kale)
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
• 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (or your favorite nut butter)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 dark chocolate chips

Makes 1-2 servings.

Place all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth (you may need to stir or add more almond milk depending on how powerful your blender is). Pour into your favorite glass, pop in a straw, sit back and enjoy.

*Notes:

-If you don't have any frozen bananas on hand, feel free to use a fresh, ripe banana and add 4-6 ice cubes to make it colder.

-Feel free to adjust the amounts to your specific tastes, most times I make this I don't measure the ingredients I just toss in whatever looks good. 

Fun fact: Today is my 100th post! So I'd just like to say thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who reads this blog and for all the comments and feedback both on here and Facebook. It means so much to me! If there is anything you'd like to see more of on the blog, please don't hesitate to ask!

Blueberry Banana Bran Muffins (Vegan)

Bran muffins are one of those great dividers. Like olives, sushi or mushrooms, people either love them or hate them. I have always loved bran muffins. Growing up, I remember my mom bringing home boxes of the day-old muffins from the grocery store and I always wanted the bran muffin. Not the blueberry, not the lemon poppy seed or the corn, I wanted the bran muffin. I'm weird, I know.

Along with great dividers, bran muffins are also many times great deceivers. People tend to just assume they're healthier. Whether this is consciously or sub-consciously, I think we all do it on some level. Unfortunately bran muffins are often times anything but healthy. Out of curiosity, I did a quick Google search  for nutrition facts for the average bran muffin. The results for one muffin? Almost 350 calories with over 11 grams of fat and 23 grams of sugar. Yikes!

But have no fear! I have come up with a solution for us bran muffin lovers! A recipe as nutritious as it is delicious! My recipe has only 160 nutrient-dense calories per muffin with only 2 grams of healthy fat, almost 5 grams of protein and half the amount of sugar that bakery muffins have. Plus they are loaded with fiber (over 8 grams per muffin!), manganese and vitamin B6. Now there's a muffin to feel good about!

Blueberry Banana Bran Muffins

• 3/4 Cup Whole Spelt Flour
• 3/4 Cup Wheat Bran
• 1/4 Cup Old Fashioned Oats
• 2 Tablespoons Ground Flax Seeds
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• Pinch of Sea Salt
• 2 Overripe Bananas
• 1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1/8 Cup Blackstrap Molasses
• 1/8 Cup Pure Maple Syrup
• 1/4 Cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
• 1/2 Cup Blueberries

Makes 6 muffins.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine first 6 ingredients. Mash in the bananas. Then add the vanilla extract, molasses and maple syrup. Stir in the almond milk until just combined. Carefully fold in blueberries. Line a muffin pan with liners or lightly grease with coconut oil. Fill each muffin liner to the top with batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and cleanly removed. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Then sit back, relax and enjoy a muffin you can feel good about eating.

So how 'bout you, are you a fan of bran?

Zucchini Banana Nut Muffins (Vegan)

I'm just gonna go ahead and warn you now; there will be many-a-squash recipe on the blog in the next few weeks. Squash season is in full swing which means three for a dollar at the Farmer's Market on Saturday. How could I not come home with three squash (squashes?) every week?

These muffins came out better than expected and as crazy as it may sound I think they taste better with time. The room temperature one I ate for breakfast this morning was even tastier than when they first came out of the oven a couple days ago. Go figure. These muffins are made with no added oil, no white sugar, no white flour, no eggs and no butter. They are made with fruit, veggies, nuts, whole wheat flour, almond milk and chia seeds.

Zucchini Banana Nut Muffins

Lightly adapted from this recipe.

• 1 3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 1/2 Chia Seeds
• 1 Lose Cup of Vegan Brown Sugar (approximately 2/3 cup packed)
• 2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• Pinch of Sea Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1 Cup Grated Zucchini
• 2 Overripe Bananas, Mashed
• 1 Cup Almond Milk
• 1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 3/4 Cup Chopped Pecans (or Walnuts)

Makes 12 muffins.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If you're not using muffins liners, lightly grease muffin tin. 

Combine flour, chia seeds, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl. In another medium or large size bowl, grate the zucchini and mash the bananas. Mix in the almond milk and then the pecans. Add the dry mix to the wet mix, do not over mix. Spoon or pour the batter into the muffin tins. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the muffins feel firm, with little give with pressed down lightly. Allow to cool before consuming. Enjoy them plain or however you like. I like mine topped with peanut butter. 

What's your favorite summer squash? 

What's your favorite way to enjoy it?

Toasted Coconut Banana Pancakes (Vegan)

Saturday morning I woke up and decided it was a pancake morning. Some days are pancake days and it doesn't do you any favors to ignore that fact. Nine times out of ten when I make pancakes, it's this kind- it's my absolute favorite! Pancakes should always be made with bananas and coconut in my opinion. Then again, if you've been hanging out at my blog, you've probably noticed I think most things are better with bananas and coconut. 

Now before we get to the recipe, there's something I should mention. Every time I make these pancakes I also get this song playing in my head. So if you plan on making these pancakes, make sure you have this song playing in the background; it makes them taste better I swear.

Toasted Coconut Banana Pancakes

Adapted from Chef in Disguise

• 1 1/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar (I used Beet Sugar)
• Pinch of Salt
• 1 Cup Almond Milk
• 1 Teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 Ripe Banana
• Coconut Oil for Cooking
• Unsweetened Shredded Coconut (I totally forgot to measure how much I used, I just sprinkled away!)

Makes 4 Large Pancakes.

Warm skillet or griddle to a medium-low heat. Place about 1 teaspoon of coconut oil on the surface and spread it around as it melts to grease the pan. Sprinkle a thin layer of shredded coconut onto the pan and allow to toast. While that's heating, in a medium sized bowl, mix the first four ingredients together. Then mix in the almond milk and apple cider vinegar until just combined; try not to overmix. Ladle about 1/3 cup of the batter onto the heated surface. Thinly slice the banana and place the slices on top of the pancake batter. Allow to cook until small bubbles begin to form, flip the pancake and cook for another minute or two. Repeat with the rest of the batter, adding more coconut oil and shredded coconut as needed. Serve with pure maple syrup or fresh strawberry sauce or whatever you like (I like honey on mine). And if you're feeling really fancy, you can even mix chocolate chips into the batter.

Today is Tuesday so that means I must announce the winner of my first ever giveaway! Drum roll, please...

The winner is Hannah from Grove St. Kitchen! I loved her idea of using the vanilla extract in nut butters, I can't wait to try it. Congratulations Hannah! I'll be contacting you soon so I can send you your vanilla extract.  As for everyone else, be on the lookout for my next giveaway!

Happy Tuesday!

What are your favorite kind of pancakes?

Banana Nut Breakfast Cookies (Vegan, Gluten Free)

This morning I woke up to this...

...and this...

No one warned me before I moved out to Colorado that springtime in the Rockies is unlike springtime anywhere else. Apparently, it is the coldest, snowiest, cloudiest season and if you know me, you know I do not enjoy any of those things. I thought I was out-smarting Mother Nature by moving in here in April, but clearly the joke was on me. 

I'm trying to maintain a good attitude about it and tell myself it'll feel like spring soon and that we need the precipitation since we're in a drought, but when that didn't work I took to the kitchen. Homemade cookies are one of my ultimate comfort foods and when those cookies are actually good for you, so much so it's acceptable to eat them for breakfast... double win!

Don't you love the old school blue mason jars Molly found in her grandfather's basement?

These cookies are full of nothing but wholesome ingredients like old-fashioned oats, ground flax seed, almond butter, bananas and a hint of honey. They're soft and chewy and I definitely did not burn my mouth taste-testing one straight out of the oven. They make the perfect grab-and-go breakfast on those cold mornings like today when you hit the snooze button a few times in an attempt to avoid the chilly air. Or bring them on a hike or on a picnic or to the beach. They're filling and satisfying without weighing you down. They're loaded with protein, fiber, potassium, Vitamin E and healthy fats like Omega-3. Plus, they're cookies for breakfast, how can you complain about that? 

*Since we just moved our pantry is still a little sad and empty so I used what nuts and nut butter I had on hand, feel free to substitute walnuts (which I would have preferred to use) or other nuts in place of the almonds and feel free to substitute peanut butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter, mac nut butter....or whatever you fancy. You will notice very quickly that both Molly and I love almonds.

Banana Nut Breakfast Cookies

• 1 Ripe Banana
• 1/4 Cup Almond Milk (or other non-dairy milk)
• 1/4 Cup Almond Butter
• 1 Tablespoon Honey (Vegans substitute Pure Maple Syrup, Agave or Brown Rice Syrup)
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons Ground Flax Seed
• 1/4 Cup Sliced or Chopped Almonds
• 1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats (make sure they're Gluten Free for those with sensitivities)

Makes 12 cookies.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium size bowl, mash banana and add the almond milk, almond butter, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and flax seed. Mix thoroughly. Add the almonds and oats, mix to combine. Batter with be slightly loose and wet. Spoon batter onto a silpat, wax paper or greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15 until slightly toasted looking and slightly firm to the touch, be careful not to over bake or they may become crumbly. Allow to cool for 5 minutes and dig in!

*Feel free to mix in other fun ingredients as well such as shredded coconut, dark chocolate chunks or dried fruit.

Are you one of the lucky people experiencing spring weather? 

Tell me about it so that I may live vicariously through you.