Healthy Banana Bread

I've been searching everywhere for a healthy banana bread recipe and found one at Half Baked that looked pretty healthy because it contained no sugar or oil and uses whole wheat flour.  I made it this weekend with a couple substitutions- adding chopped walnuts and skipping the honey because instead of regular low fat Greek yogurt, I used my favorite carmel Greek yogurt by Stoneyfield.  I thought that would add enough sweetness.  Adding the walnuts was a hit, but don't omit the honey like I did.  My bread wasn't sweet enough, but I'm thinking this recipe would be good with the honey.  I'm going to keep experimenting!  

Healthy Banana Bread via Half Baked

2 cups whole-wheat self-raising flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon

3 bananas (very ripe)

¼ cup honey

2 eggs

¼ cup yogurt- lowfat Greek 

1 tsp vanilla

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a loaf pan.
• Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
• In a separate, mash the three bananas and stir in the rest of the wet ingredients. With a mixer, mix until well combined and the banana is smooth.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir together, but don't over mix.
• Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake for about 30 minutes.  
• The bread is done when a toothpick comes out clean.

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Faith

Are you a "Super Souler"?  That's how Oprah affectionately refers to those who watch her Super Soul series on Sunday nights.  Each week she interviews a different thinker, pastor, author, or person who seeks to have a deeper/more meaningful life experience.  She recently had Steven Pressfield on, the author of The War of Art.  Have you read it?  It was a great conversation about how when we try to go higher or deeper in our lives (be it in our relationships, career, health, parenting, finances, etc.) we will naturally encounter things like resistance, fear, and self-doubt.  But, Steven says, that's when we know we're on the right path.  Two sentences very eloquently written in his book stood out:

Whoa.  Is this a lightbulb moment for any of you?  As their conversation continued, Steven shared what I also believe to be true.  Once you commit, and you are on the path to living the life within (the path that resonates with your soul), all kinds of aid comes to you to support your commitment.  

Has this happened in your life?  I can think back to when I was in college, working full-time and trying to earn a degree in journalism that was taking forever and not really having a direction or clear career path, I finally committed to becoming a lawyer.  It was a quiet, barely whispered dream inside that I never actually believed could materialize.  It seemed impossible in my life (no money of my own, no financial support from family, no family that had ever gone to college, self-talk of "I'm not smart or sophisticated enough" and so on), but once I committed and spoke the dream out loud to people, doors opened and I was assisted.  I got help and even a mentor.  But, I only committed and got on the path- God opened the doors and helped see me through all the way to graduation and to my first job. 

By the way, I wasn't a church-going, Bible-reading girl before law school.  But that didn't matter to God.  He knew my heart.  It was during law school that He really got ahold of me and my eyes were more fully opened.  Isn't it amazing the plans and purpose God has for us?!  

I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.  Isaiah 42:16.

The Word also says in Isaiah 43:19, "I am doing a new thing . . .  do you not perceive it?"  In other words, can't you tell He's up to something in YOUR life?!  

Have a great Sunday!

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Homemade Granola

I came across a great recipe for homemade granola on Christina's blog, This Woman Cooks and she graciously agreed to share it here.  Her blog is full of lots of recipes and the cutest pictures of her little baby girl!

Christina's original homemade granola recipe called for 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and 1/4 cup of brown sugar so I would make a couple easy tweaks to make it healthier.  First, I  would omit the brown sugar altogether, and second, I would substitute the same amount of canola oil as it is  lower in saturated fat than vegetable oil and contains omega nutrients, which is considered to be better for your heart.  

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via This Woman Cooks

Source: slightly adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

Servings: 1 pound

2 cups rolled oats

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil (substitute canola oil) 

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar- (omit) 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup almonds

1/3 cup whole hazelnuts

1/3 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, toss the oats with the cinnamon and salt.

In a medium bowl, stir together the oil, honey, brown sugar, and vanilla. Whisk until completely combined. Pour the honey mixture over the oats and use to hands to combine.

Using your hands, grab fistfuls of the mixture, so you'll have a couple of clumps for texture. Pour the mixture onto the baking sheet and spread it out, leaving a few clumps here and there.

Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven to flip the granola with a spatula. Sprinkle the almonds over the granola and return to the oven. Bake for 5 minutes, then remove from the oven again and flip. Sprinkle the hazelnuts over the granola. Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Sprinkle the cranberries over the granola and use your hands to transfer it to an airtight container. Granola will keep for 1 week.

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Thank you Christina (This Woman Cooks) for sharing this recipe today ! I hope y'all will stop by and say hello!

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Have a great weekend!

Working Out and Breakout Solutions

Working out is great for your mind and body, but can wreak havok on your face.  Normally, I have pretty clear skin, but when I'm doing a lot of sweaty workouts, I notice my forehead breaking out a bunch.   Does this happen to you too?  I have started washing my face in the gym locker room as soon as I finish my workout (as opposed to waiting until I get home) and I feel like that has helped a lot.  I keep foaming face wash pads in my gym bag and they are perfect because you just throw them away after each use.  I've had them so long that I threw away the original package, but I think they might have been Olay 2-in-1 Daily Facial Cloths.  Super convenient and helping cut down on the breakouts.

At home, my skin is sensitive so I stick with the same gentle cleanser I've been using for years (Cetaphil) and then sometimes at night also use good 'ole SeaBreeze (for sensitive skin).  For a moisturizer/sunscreen, I also wear Cetaphil.  It's the only sunscreen I've found that won't break out my skin- besides the spray on kind I wear at the pool.  Both Cetaphil and SeaBreeze are sold in the drug store/grocery store.  

Obviously my skin care routine is pretty sparse.   I drink a lot of water, try to avoid sun on my face, and wear a visor when I run or go to the pool, but that's about it.  Are you doing facials, skin care "systems" or have any particular products you love?  I have a friend who is a consultant for Rodan + Fields and she swears by it.  She gave me a mini facial to try that I still need to do.  I'll be hosting a giveaway for  Rodan + Fields soon too if you're interested in that line.  

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Slow Cooker Lentil Soup

My son and I were home alone on Sunday and had one of those super lazy days where we stayed in pajamas all day long and didn't leave the house.  What a nice treat complete with hard rainfall, cozy covers, and movies on t.v.  Around 11:00 a.m. I got up and threw together a simple slow cooker lentil soup and enjoyed the yummy aroma emanating from the crockpot throughout the afternoon.  It's really nice to know that dinner's cooking and you don't have to worry about it later- gives you more time in your day and something to look forward to that night.  

INGREDIENTS (from America's Test Kitchen)

• 2 medium onions , minced
• 4 medium garlic cloves 
• 2 TBS Extra-virgin olive oil (for serving, optional)
• 1TBS tomato paste 
• 1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, soaked, rinsed and minced
• 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves , or 1 teaspoon dried
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 4 slices of bacon 
• 3 carrots, chopped into 1/2 inch chunks 
• 12 ounces portobello mushroom caps, gills removed, cut into 1/2-inch chunks (I used sliced bella mushrooms)
• 1 cup brown or green lentils (1 cup), rinsed and picked over
• 1 bay leaf (not pictured)
• 8 oz. Swiss chard leaves only (I used collard greens) 

To maximize the flavor of the soup, I cooked the first few ingredients (onion, garlic, thyme, bacon, tomato sauce, porcini mushrooms) over the stove for about five minutes, but the recipe says you can have the same effect by microwaving those same ingredients for 5 minutes. 

Lentils are a great source of protein with about 3 grams of protein per tablespoon.

Stir both broths, bacon, carrots, fresh mushrooms, lentils and bay leaf into slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low until the soup is thickened and the lentils are tender, 9 to 11 hours. (Alternatively, cover and cook on high for 5 to 7 hours.) 

When the soup has about 30 minutes left to cook, remove the bacon and bay leaf, and add in the chopped swiss chard (I used greens because my store was out of chard).  

At the end, season to taste with salt and pepper and drizzle in a bit more olive oil.  I served ours with toasted French bread, but a healthier option would be to skip it or use whole wheat. 

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Faith

via

Baked Fish in Parchment Paper // Fish en Papillote

Fish isn't necessarily one of my go-to meals, but I eat it because it's good for me and is a change from my typical diet.  One of the easiest ways I know to bake fish is in parchment paper.  En Papillote  (pah-pee-YOHT) means to steam small portions of food in a wrapper.

Most recipes I've seen for Fish en Papillote combine onion, zucchini, carrot and garlic.  You chop the veggies, season with olive oil and salt and pepper, and arrange them on top of your fish with sliced lemon slices and sprigs of thyme or other aromatics.  

Place all the ingredients on the parchment paper and fold the paper tightly to create a seal for the food to steam while cooking. Put the package on a baking sheet and cook at 375 until the fish is cooked through about 12 minutes. Then cut open the packets and serve directly on the paper or remove onto a plate with a spatula.

I recently used this method to cook salmon, but instead of the veggies above, added asparagus.  Because I didn't chop the asparagus before putting it in the packet, it wasn't quite ready in 12 minutes and I finished it off in a skillet over medium-high heat.  I only seasoned the fish with salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon.  Pretty good even if I'm not crazy about fish!

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