Easy Healthy Breakfast Crepes

We love eating breakfast for dinner at my house and one of our favorites are crepes. This recipe is a healthy variation of my Crepes recipe and a cinch to make. These are incredibly light and have the perfect crisp on the edges. Serve with your favorite seasonal fruit and a dollop of whipped cream.

Easy Healthy Breakfast Crepes

Yield: 2-4 Servings

1 cup cottage cheese
6 eggs
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Place all ingredients in a blender, and blend on high for 1 minute (you may need to pause and scrape the sides half-way through). Scoop out the batter in 1/4 cups onto a non-stick heated griddle or skillet. If using an electric griddle turn your heat to about 375 degrees or if using a skillet on the stove, turn your heat to medium-high. Tilt the griddle to spread out the batter until thinned, cook until browned on the bottom and then flip. Serve Warm.

Fresh Shrimp Spring Rolls

We love Asian inspired cuisine at my house, from the stir-fries, egg rolls, sushi and soups, we love it all. Having made a number of different egg roll recipes, I wanted to change it up a bit and try some fresh spring rolls. Filled with fresh veggies, herbs, rice noodles and cold shrimp, these taste fantastic! And after a weekend of some unhealthy eating choices (like Ghirardelli Caramel Turtle Brownies ) I needed to start the week off right.

Yield: 4 Servings

Fresh Shrimp Spring Rolls

10 spring-roll wrappers
Sweet and sour dipping sauce

Filling
1 cup raw spinach
2-3 ounces dried rice sticks
12 ounces cooked shrimp, thawed
1/2 English cucumber, cut match-stick style (skin and seeds removed, if desired)
1 carrot, cut match-stick style
1 cup red cabbage, shredded
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Handful of fresh cilantro
Handful of fresh basil
Handful of fresh mint leaves

Fill a medium sized pot with water and bring to a boil. Place rice sticks in a metal bowl and pour boiling water over the rice sticks. Gently stir every minute until noodles are cooked. Watch the noodles carefully, as they can become mushy very quickly. Drain noodles and run cool water over them. Set aside.

Prepare veggies and set aside.

To make rolls, fill a large bowl with warm water and submerge one spring-roll wrapper in water until it becomes pliable. This will only take a few seconds. Place softened wrapper on a plate and layer filling ingredients down the bottom-middle of the roll. Fold bottom and sides in and tightly roll. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Serve immediately with your favorite sauce or refrigerate until ready to eat.

Meals for the Week

Meal planning done! We had fun trying some new recipes and throwing in our classic favorites.

~Enjoy~

1. One of my favorites this week was the Roasted Cauliflower and Chick Pea Tacos by Two Peas & Their Pod! Their incredible recipe takes healthy vegetarian eating to an entire new level. If you thought healthy eating had to be boring take another look with these top-notch and beautiful looking tacos. Their Lime Crema sauce is also an absolute must and only takes a couple of minutes to whip up. Top with chopped tomatoes, extra avocado, baby spinach and some red onions.

2. Next up Healthy Beef and Cashew Stir Fry from ifoodreal. Chicken was on sale last week so I used chicken instead of the beef. The flavors in the sauce meld beautifully and the cashews add the perfect nutty element. Word of advice, when roasting the cashews watch them VERY, VERY carefully. They can go from no color to burnt in a matter of a few seconds. So unless you want to be salvaging through the cashews looking for non-burnt non-carcinogen pieces, do your family a favor and don't walk away from the stove to take pictures of your super cute baby. Just trust me :)

3. My Chicken Basil Pesto Pasta has become of our favorite summer dinners. I love incorporating the garden produce into our meals and the basil and spinach pesto is the perfect place to do so. This also makes great leftovers for lunch the next day.

4. Salmon Baked in Cream with Sweet Bay, Thyme and Dill from The Nourished Kitchen is absolutely delightful! My local grocery store has had frozen salmon fillets right about $3.50 a lb. They may not be straight from the sea to your plate wild Alaskan salmon, but for living in a landlocked state and at that price, I'll take it. Serve with a fresh salad and some roasted potatoes.

5 Lastly, Apple Bacon Cheddar Mac n Cheese by Rachel Ray. When it comes down to a favorite mac n cheese recipe, this one is the best! Substitute the regular pasta for whole wheat and serve with a fresh spinach salad. For the dressing try my personal favorite Classic Vinaigrette Dressing.

Easy Pita Bread Pizza

Usually I'm a sucker for pizza with a homemade crust but don't always have the time or want to take the time to make my crust from scratch. Here at my house we LOVE making individual pizzas with whole wheat pita bread. They bake up fast and we have fun creating our own personal pizzas. Get creative with the toppings and let the kids design their own dinners.

Easy Pita Bread Pizza

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place pita bread on cookie sheet and spread a thin layer of sauce over each pita. Sprinkle with desired toppings and bake 10-12 minutes or until cheese is gooey and lightly browned. Serve hot.

Favorite Toppings and Ingredients 
Garlic pasta sauce
Whole wheat pita bread
Green pepper
Red onions
Black olives
Pineapple
Ham
Spinach
Mushrooms
Tomatoes
Ricotta cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Cheddar cheese
Parmesan cheese
Fresh basil
Dried pizza seasonings

Skinny Chocolate Pudding

A couple months ago I had the opportunity to try the most delicious chocolate pudding from A Vibrant Life. Just four ingredients, vegan and super easy to prepare. Rich chocolate, silky smooth consistency and the perfect touch of sweetness. Since my first taste of this treat I've made it about five times and loved it even more (if that's possible) each time. Personally, I love serving this with some summer berries and a dollop of fresh whipped cream. If you want to keep with dessert strictly vegan try using whipped coconut cream instead of the heavy whipping cream.

Yield: 6 servings

Adapted from A Vibrant Life

Skinny Chocolate Pudding

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 cup vegan or regular semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 ripe avocado, pealed and pit removed
1 sweet potato, cooked and pealed
Strawberries, for garnish
Whipped cream, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and prick sweet potato with a fork and bake for about 1 hour or until soft. Meanwhile combine almond milk and chocolate chips in a small saucepan over low heat. Continue stirring until chips are melted and then set aside. Peal cooked and cooled sweet potato and add to a blender with the avocado and almond milk mixture. Blend until smooth. Pour into an 8 x 8 inch pan or other shallow dish. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until set. Scoop into individual dishes and garnish with berries and fresh cream.

Trio Cheese Zucchini Melts

With my zucchini plants on mass production mode I've been trying to get creative on preparing this versatile vegetable. Last night the hubs was out so I just needed to cook for one. Technically for two but the 7 month old doesn't eat much yet. These trio cheese melts are perfect for a quick lunch or dinner. Ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese meld beautifully in this essence of pizza zucchini melt. Simple and delicious, what more you want? Try pairing these melts with a fresh garden salad for a balanced meal.

Yield: 1 Generous Serving

Trio Cheese Zucchini Melts

1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and seeds removed

1/4 teaspoon olive oil
2-3 tablespoons pasta sauce
1 heaping tablespoon ricotta cheese

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

2 tablespoons, Parmesan cheese, shredded

1/4 teaspoon pizza seasoning*

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Lightly spread the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil. Place zucchini face up in the prepared dish and bake for 8 minutes. Remove zucchini from oven and evenly spread sauce in each zucchini half. Dollop the ricotta across the zucchini and cover with the remaining cheeses. Sprinkle pizza seasoning over cheese and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly. 

*The seasoning I used contains a blend of onion powder, bell pepper, fennel, oregano, garlic, basil, chilies, parsley, thyme, marjoram and celery flakes. If you don't have the premixed seasonings a dash of basil, oregano and little garlic would also be fantastic. 

Meals for the Week

Five delicious meals! Perfect for summer and three vegetarian options. Enjoy!

1. Crispy Quinoa Burgers

These burgers are super yummy! Use whatever beans you have on hand. Serve with your favorite green veggie. These will not disappoint!

2. Whole Wheat Veggie Pizza.

You can find one of my favorite crust recipes at Ambikas Kitchen . I like to substitute the white flour for whole wheat. Some of our favorite veggie toppings include: Fresh spinach, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, red and green peppers, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.

3. Crock Pot Chicken Tikka Masala

Love, Love, Love this recipe from my friend Yvonne at Tried and Tasty Serve with basmati rice, a fresh garden salad and naan.

4. Lentil Salad with Moroccan Coconut Dressing

Super yummy, refreshing and vegetarian.

5. Summer Vegetable Soup with Kale

One of my favorite personal blog recipes, a little chicken sausage in the soup gives it a great flavor boost. Serve with fresh whole wheat bread!