Delish Vegetable Lentil Soup in the Crock Pot

I have tried a lot of lentil soup recipes and this is my new favorite!  I love just throwing in a bunch of leftover veggies and having a delicious soup by dinner time!

Vegetable Lentil Soup

3 carrots chopped
1 sweet potatoe chopped into small cubes
1 chopped white onion
3 cloves of garlic, pressed
3 celery stalks chopped
2 cups of vegetable stock
6 cups of water
2 cups of dried lentils, rinsed
1 tsp dried thyme

Put all the ingredients into the crock pot, low for about 8 hours or hi for about 4 hours.  Check the lentils and sweet potatoes for doneness. 

Before serving add 2 cups of chopped kale. Cook for about 5-10 minutes.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Delish!!  Makes about 12 2-cup servings. Calories- 116, Fiber- 11.5g and Protein- 10g.

healthy carrot cake muffin

I have been working on a healthier carrot cake muffin and I think I finally have it!!  These are dense, flavorful muffins that really satisfy my sweet tooth.

Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar substitute, I used splenda with fiber
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup milk, can use almond or soy
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil, could use any oil but I like the nutty taste of coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix dry ingredients together.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.  Mix will be thick.  Makes 12 muffins.  Bake 20-24 minutes until golden brown.

Per muffin: Calories- 135, Fiber- 3 g and Protein- 4 g

Roasted Garlic Hummus

I love hummus and it is just too easy to make at home, as long as you have a food processor.  I like to season it to my liking and to cut out all the preservatives and additives of store bought.  I like to buy dried chickpeas and cook them at home either on the stove or in the crockpot.  They do take quite a while to cook but I usually make a double batch.  Homemade hummus will stay good in the fridge for quite a while, if you can keep from eating it all in a week!!  You could also buy organic canned chickpeas for ease but they will cost more than buying them dried.  You can use regular canned chickpeas if you like but they will be high in sodium and other stuff.

Roasted Garlic Hummus

• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1 tbsp tahini paste- I buy organic from Whole foods.  One jar will last quite a while in the fridge.
• 1 head of roasted garlic.  I roast garlic in the oven for 45 minutes but you could also use minced garlic from a jar or granulated garlic.  Roasted garlic will lose some of the strong garlic flavor, so I use quite a bit.
• salt, pepper, olive oil and paprika to taste

Blend the chickpeas, tahini paste, roasted garlic and some water in the food processor until smooth.  I start with 1/4 cup water and just keep adding in small increments until smooth.  Add salt, pepper, oil and paprika to your liking.  You could also use roasted red pepper instead of garlic.

Whole wheat protein waffles

One of my weekend tasks is making breakfast for Jeff and I.  He loves waffles and pancakes so I adapted this recipe to make it healthier.  No added sugar but sweet and delicious.  I love the flavor it has and I don't even use syrup!!

Ingredients

• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• whole wheat flour added to the protein powder to make 1 1/2 cups total- I use white whole wheat flour but regular works well too.  I have also added a few tablespoons of milled flaxseed from time to time.
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/3 cup oil- I switch from cocnut oil, canola oil, and melted butter depending on what I have.

Mix all the dry ingredients.  Mix all the wet ingredients in another bowl then add to the dry ingredients.  Cook according to your waffle maker.  Makes about 6 large waffles or 8-10 smaller waffles. 

Granola Balls

These are three different types of treats here.  The left side are granola balls.  One set with a little added cocoa.  The right side are the peanut butter and chocolate balls.  The recipe is below.

For the granola balls, you can really add or use any ingredients you like.  Depending on what I have around the house and what I might have left over from other recipes, these are different everytime I make them.

Basic recipe

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup honey or agave
• 1 cup nuts
• 1 cup natural peanut butter

This basic recipe is great.  They are the lighter colored balls in the middle.

For the ones one the left, I added 2 Tbsps of cocoa.  Tasted pretty good.

I also like to add craisins, raisins, coconut, sunflower seeds, protein powder (I will add a bit less rolled oats when I add this), chopped appple, and 100% cacoa chopped fine.

You can really mix and add as you like.  For my taste, the one cup of honey is too sweet so I usually add salty mixes or reduce the honey by 1/4 cup.

Delicious peanut butter and chocolate treats!!

These are a delicious alternative to processed peanut butter cups.  I chose to make them into balls because it was easier but they can be pressed into muffin cups to resemble the other peanut butter cups.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup of nuts- I have used pecans and walnuts but peanuts would be great too!
• 3/4 cup dried pitted dates
• 3 tablespoons of 100% cacoa unsweetened - usually in the baking section
• 2 Tbsp. natural peanut butter- no sugar added

Place all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until crumbly.  I rolled them into balls but they could be pressde into a large bar and divided.

They make a great no sugar added treat and will help satisfy your sweet tooth!!

Starting over!!

Not sure what happened to my old blog.  I know I have been busy lately but I don't remember what I did with the old posts.  I guess I got a little impulsive and deleted them!!  Oops.  The good news is I am only 3 finals away from a month vacation.  I will have plenty of time to work on new recipes and projects around the house.  I am determined to finish the remodel of my bathroom.  I took the wallpaper, well most of it, down over a year ago.  I figure it's time to get some paint up on the wall.

I am also commited to exercising more often and making some of those recipes from pinterest.  So here goes nothing!!