Avocado Coconut Popsicles

These creamy popsicles are a real treat! Made with just 4 ingredients – nutrient dense avocados, coconut-almond milk, raw sugar and sweetened coconut flakes. They are also dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free.

It’s no secret, I'm pretty avocado obsessed! I grew up eating avocados all my life and I usually incorporate them into a meal just about every day! In fact, I love them so much I created an entire Pinterest Board devoted to avocados. But I usually eat them in some type of savory dish such as guacamole, BLT, egg salad, in my salad dressings, with my soups and more.

But the fact is, in Brazil where my Dad lived for many years, avocados were never eaten with salt; instead they were treated as the fruit that they are and were often sweetened with sugar. My dad used to make a smoothie years ago with avocados, milk and sugar which he called Vitamina. Because I love coconut, I took his smoothie idea and added coconut flakes and loved it! And since avocados are so nutrient dense, you're also getting a good dose of healthy fats, vitamins and minerals to boot!

PS - The popsicle mold I used is from Progressive which I bought on Amazon, click the link if you're interested.

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Vegan Eggplant Meatballs

These amazing meatless meatballs are made with eggplant, white beans and breadcrumbs to hold them together – if I was a vegan, I would have no problem eating this for dinner every night! They almost remind me of eggplant parmesan, in the form of a meatball.

I've had my eye on this recipes since I got a copy of Mark Bittman's VB6 Cookbook, and it did not disappoint! I love finding new ways to incorporate more veggies into my diet, and I try to eat meatless two to three times a week, so Mark's concept of eating vegan by day and flexitarian by night is quite appealing to me. And this week, I'm giving away 3 signed copies of the VB6 Cookbook on Skinny Bits. Click here for a chance to win your signed copy of the VB6 Cookbook.

Mark suggests serving this on a whole wheat roll, over pasta, rice or vegetables, but I thought I would make some zoodles (zucchini noodles) for a veggie play on spaghetti and meatballs. To make the zucchini noodles, you'll need a spiralizer (I use the Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer) or a mandolin fitted with a julienne blade. I use 1 medium zucchini per person and saute each zucchini with 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil and garlic for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes tops. To see a more detailed zucchini noodle recipe, click here for my Zucchini Noodles with Lemon and Shrimp.

These meatballs are perfect for all types of diets; vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free, clean eating, and gluten-free if you swap the crumbs for gluten-free breadcrumbs.

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Spiralized Raw Zucchini Salad with Avocado and Edamame

Fresh, quick and delicious – this salad takes less than 5 minutes to make, start to finish and there's no cooking involved, so it's perfect for the summer because you won't heat up your kitchen!

This salad was inspired by an amazing vegan appetizer I had in Seaside Florida prepared for me by the staff at Raw and Juicy. It was so fresh and simple, I knew I was going to recreate it at home. Rather than dicing the zucchini into perfect little squares, I used my Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer  (my all time FAVORITE cooking gadget) and spiralized it instead plus I added some cooked shelled edamame sold in the salad section of my supermarket for protein. The results were fresh and fantastic – a MUST try!

And speaking of summer, as shorter hemlines and bathing suit weather approaches, I want to introduce you to my friend Erin Stutland – a life and fitness coach and the creator of Shrink Session: Tone Your Body, Expand Your Mind. She has been featured in Glamour Magazine, Shape, Daily Candy and more and people all over the world are currently experiencing her work.

Erin and I got together last week in her little NYC kitchen to shoot a quick, fun cooking video to demonstrate just how easy this recipe is. Can you believe this is my FIRST cooking video on Skinnytaste? It's not perfect, but I don't think it's terrible for my first time. I plan on doing some more in the future to get more practice, you check it out here...



Erin is a seasoned pro at making videos, and she has also created a workout that is unlike ANYTHING I have ever experienced before. I say that, because frankly, it doesn’t feel like a workout at all. What makes Shrink Session so DIFFERENT from your average workout is that it will definitely tone your bod, amp up your metabolism and burn fat. But it also helps you step into a more a confident, powerful, rock star part of yourself that you may not be in touch with on a daily basis.

Erin is running a FREE 5 day Say it, Sweat it, Get it Challenge that starts June 2nd. You can sign up HERE. Don't miss it. I have no doubt that you are going to fall in love with the workouts and your body!

Hope you enjoy the recipe – it's vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free, gluten-free, clean, and delicious!


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Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps

This is my go-to turkey taco recipe. It's delicious and light – On nights I want to go low-carb, I forgo the taco shells and use lettuce wraps instead!

This is an oldie from the archives, but since I make this so often I thought I would update the photos just in time for taco Tuesday! It's naturally gluten-free, low-carb, and paleo & dairy-free without the cheese and sour cream. I find the outer leaves of Iceberg lettuce makes the best wraps, it's crisp and pliable and the leaves are large enough to make decent size wraps.

Add your favorite taco fixins such as shredded cheddar, light sour cream, chives, black olives, jalapeno, tomatoes or whatever you like on your tacos. The portions are generous, and if you're kids want shells, you can easily bake a few for them and use the same filling.

Making your own taco seasoning is a healthier alternative to buying packaged taco seasoning, and uses less sodium, no sugar, no preservatives and no msg. It also saves you money if you are on a budget. If you prefer to use the package seasoning, simply replace it with the spices listed here.

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Skillet Harissa Turkey Meatloaf

Making meatloaf in the skillet is perfect for busy weeknights – it's ready in less than 30 minutes!

I took my basic turkey meatloaf recipe, swapped the ketchup for jarred Mina Harrisa (or you can use homemade), added shredded zucchini and made them in the skillet. The results were juicy, quick, delicious round meatloaves with a little kick! I served it with a simple chopped cucumber and tomato salad which I tossed with a little olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.

You can purchase Mina Harissa on Amazon and I think Whole Foods carries it, it's a bright red Moroccan condiment that can be used with couscous, vegetables, meats or whatever you want. You can also make it from scratch which I often do, but for this recipe, Mina was perfect.

If you prefer to make this in the oven as a large loaf, you can! Bake it at 350°F for 1 hour.

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Canned Tuna Ceviche

Transform ordinary canned tuna into a zesty, flavorful lunch with a Latin flair by adding fresh lime juice, cilantro, jalapeño, tomato and avocado – so good!

A high school friend (hi Cynthia!) actually gave me this idea. She had it while vacationing in Guatemala and shared the idea with me when she returned. When I read the email, I thought it was brilliant! It's basically a poor man's ceviche.

Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE a good fresh ceviche made raw fish or seafood. It's actually one of my favorite things to eat. I actually shared a recipe here of Ceviche in Cucumber Cups or this ceviche-like Zesty Lime Shrimp and Avocado Salad. But when you need a quick lunch using pantry ingredients, this is great and it's inexpensive, low-carb, paleo-friendly, dairy-free and gluten-free!

For presentation, I put the ceviche tuna into the can to use as a ring mold, then inverted it onto my plate; completely optional of course! Topped with fresh avocado, this was filling and delicious.

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Quinoa Chickpea and Avocado Salad

Garbanzos, avocado, quinoa, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, lime juice and cilantro – this flavorful vegetarian salad is loaded with protein, fiber and healthy fats. Chickpeas (garbanzo beans) are my new favorite legume. I only recently started liking them in my salads, but now I can't get enough. Using dried garbanzos taste better than canned, but for speed and convenience, canned is perfectly fine here. This is also vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free and under 250 calories.

I don't know about you, but I'm counting the days until summer (54 days to go!!) Living near the ocean, nothing makes me happier than having my feet in the sand with a good book or magazine. But that also means bathing suit shopping (ugh!) and exposing a lot more skin than I did all winter. My solution – eat more salads (and of course exercise)!

This salad is perfect for lunch, you can make it ahead, leaving the cucumbers and avocado out, and add the just before your ready to serve.

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Carrot "Rice" Leek Risotto with Bacon

While you dig your fork into this fluffy bowl of “rice,” you won’t believe it’s not real rice. Made of spiralized carrots with leeks and bacon – it's quick, gluten-free, paleo-friendly and dairy-free. If you just bought a spiralizer and need new recipe ideas, look no further! Ali, from Inspiralized loved her spiralizer so much, she created a blog dedicated to spiralized vegetables. (By the way, this is my favorite spiralizer, Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer which you can buy on Amazon or Williams Sonoma) Please welcome her....

First off, ever since I started food blogging, I’ve been a fan of Skinnytaste. Now, I’m not just saying that because Gina kindly let me share a recipe here today. When you first start off as a healthy food blogger, you can’t help but discover Skinnytaste and immediately start drooling. Needless to say, she’s been an inspiration to me from the beginning. In June 2013, I started my food blog, Inspiralized. Inspiralized is a blog dedicated to cooking with spiralized vegetables. Yes, that’s right. All of my recipes use vegetable noodles! Imagine my happy surprise when I saw Gina’s Zoodles and Meatballs, her Asian Turkey Meatballs and Zoodles with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce and her Zoodles with Lemon Garlic Shrimp. Somewhere along those lines, she mentioned that she was on a “zoodle kick.” Welcome to my world, Gina!

Like me, Gina wanted to share that spiralized veggies (noodles made of vegetables using a spiralizer) are a healthy, Paleo, gluten-free, unprocessed alternative to regular pasta. Of course, these noodles can also similarly be made with a mandolin or julienne, if you don’t happen to own a spiralizer. Aside from spiralizing zucchinis, there are many other vegetables that can be turned into noodles. Actually, spiralizing is a great way to eat seasonally. For example, over at Inspiralized, I made a lot of butternut squash and sweet potato noodles this winter. While these veggie noodles allow us to make hearty bowls of low-calorie and low-carb pasta, they can also be turned into rice! By simply placing your spiralized vegetables into a food processor and pulsing for a few seconds, the noodles are transformed into rice-like “bits,” perfect for using as rice.

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Cauliflower "Fried Rice"

I LOVE fried rice, and often make my own fried rice at home with brown rice which is delicious. But sometimes when I want to cut down on my carbs, I opt for cauliflower rice.

I posted this Cilantro Lime Cauliflower "Rice" a while back, and it was a huge hit. So I decided to play around with that recipe and make this Asian version to go with the Orange Chicken I posted yesterday, and my husband (who detests cauliflower) was pretty amazed how the meal turned out. The portions are generous and you get a serving or two of vegetables into your diet.

If you like this, you may also like:

Brown Fried Rice
Asian Edamame Fried Rice
Pineapple Shrimp Fried Rice
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice


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Flounder Milanese with Arugula and Tomatoes

Breaded flounder lightly pan sauteed and topped with an arugula, lemon and tomato salad – a simple yet delicious way to prepare fish. Perfect for Lent, or any night you're in the mood for fish.

I was on a cruise a few weeks ago aboard the Norwegian and one of the meals I ordered more than once was the Flounder Milanese. I was able to recreate a lighter version of that meal; rather than deep frying it, I generously sprayed the fish with olive oil and pan sauteed it until golden. I love everything about this dish, it's light, quick and satisfying all for under 225 calories. You can use any white fish fillet you wish, and if you rather make this in the oven, I would broil it instead. Hope you enjoy!

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Chicken and Asparagus Lemon Stir Fry

Although the weather outside still feels like winter, I'm excited to see signs of Spring all around. One of those signs is asparagus. Asparagus is one of my favorite Spring vegetables, and this quick stir-fry made with chicken, lemon, garlic and ginger is a great way to make it a weeknight meal.

I used a reduced-sodium Japanese soy sauce called Shoyu which is similar to Chinese soy sauce, but has a more full bodied flavored and a touch of sweetness that I'm really in love with. I like Eden, which is organic and non-GMO. You can use either one, or even Tamari if you're gluten free. We served this over brown rice to complete the meal. 

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Spicy Shrimp with Chilies and Garlic

 

Sauteed shrimp with garlic, dried chilies and lemon juice – it's spicy, garlicky, acidic and sooooo good! You can serve this as an appetizer or have this for dinner over some baby greens with a crusty whole wheat baguette. And the best part about this dish – it's ready in under 15 minutes.

If you don't have dried chilies, you can use a generous amount of crushed red pepper. If you don't like spicy food, you can leave the chilies out completely. You can also make this with lime juice and cilantro for a twist of this dish, see Cilantro Lime Shrimp. This is gluten-free, paleo-friendly and low calorie… but trust me, you would never know it (it's THAT good!).

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Perfect Filet Mignon for Two

As a steak lover, I can't think of a better meal to enjoy for Valentine's Day.
Since it can be pricey, I only make it on special ocassions – and Valentine's Day is the perfect occasion! Get sizzling in the kitchen for an easy, Romantic dinner for two.

Filet mignon is the most tender cut of steak you can buy, and doesn't require fancy seasonings – coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper is all you need for a delicious steak that's pan seared then finished in the oven and cooked to perfection! I like mine medium rare, but you can cook it to your taste.

It's practically foolproof if you have a meat thermometer, but you can also use the finger test just in case you don't. This starts on the stove and finishes in the oven, so you'll need a heavy oven-safe non-stick skillet, or cast iron skillet to make this. One thing you should keep in mind is you'll want to bring the meat up to room temperature, so let it sit on the counter at least 30 minutes before you're ready to cook. It's perfect with sauteed or roasted vegetables on the side, here I made a quick sauteed garlic broccolini, but you can also serve it with skinny mashed potatoes.


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Salsa Verde Burgers

Wow, these Salsa Verde Burgers are OFF THE HOOK! If you need a new burger idea that everyone will love, look no further. These burgers are lean with a mean, green kick topped with pepper jack cheese, salsa verde and avocado – delish!

I shared this delicious homemade salsa verde recipe for Better Homes and Gardens on Delish Dish and decided to make these burgers using the salsa for dinner last night. You can also use store bought salsa verde, but trust me, nothing beats homemade!

I made the burgers with both lean beef burgers and chicken burgers since I had both on hand, and I loved them equally.  My husband's not eating carbs this week so he ate two beef burgers without the bun. Whether you make them with lean beef, turkey, chicken, buffalo, black bean patties, veggie burgers... modify them however you wish!

I calculated these with 93% lean beef patties, with the bun and without and with the bun and no cheese. Any other variations you'll have to do on your own – enjoy!
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Black eyed Pea Dip

Ring in the New Year with this quick and easy black-eyed pea dip!

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Morning Maple Cranberry Pecan Oat Bars

 

Chewy bars with chunks of toasted pecans and dried cranberries combined with toasted oats, almond butter and pure maple syrup. I'm in LOVE with these bars!

I made these bars last week and I couldn't wait to share them with you. I've been eating one every morning for breakfast (in fact I am having one now as I type this). These are by far, the best tasting bars I've ever had, they are chewy and have great texture, made with wholesome ingredients – one bar is a meal and it's perfect to take on the go. They are also egg free, dairy free, vegan, and can be made gluten free if you use gf oats. Next time I make these, I plan on rolling them into smaller balls and turning them into healthy cookies instead.

The recipe is very slightly modified from the Power Hungry: Ultimate Energy Cookbook. Camilla really knows how to make great tasting breakfast bars, you may remember the banana split bars I made a few month back also from the same book.

You can use any type of mild flavored unsweetened nut butter, such as almond, cashew, or sunflower seed butter. Peanut butter would also work perfectly well in this recipe, but it can overwhelm the flavor of the maple syrup. Toasting the oats and pecans adds tremendous flavor, but if you are in a hurry, you can skip this step.

Once made, individually and tightly wrap the bars in plastic wrap. Store the bars at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Alternatively, place the wrapped bars in an airtight container and freeze for up to three months. Let the frozen bars thaw at room temperature for about 1 hour.

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PB + J Smoothie and Better Blog Retreat

Strawberries, blueberries, peanut butter and almond milk – this is my favorite smoothie to order when I'm at my gym. It tastes almost like peanut butter and jelly – but it actually has no grapes.  I often make this myself at home; the peanut butter is a great source of protein and keeps me full until lunch and I just love how it tastes.

I just got a new KitchenAid 5 Speed Diamond Blender thanks to the Better Blog Retreat and I immediately knew I was going to make this smoothie to put it to the test. The blender is quite powerful and crushes ice perfectly. I give it two thumbs up!

I've been doing so much traveling these past few weeks and I'm a bit behind in sharing my amazing four days spent in Park City, Utah with some of my favorite blogging friends for the Better Blog Retreat hosted by Maria from Two Peas and Their Pod and Heidi from Foodie Crush. 

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No Bean Turkey and Sweet Potato Chili

A quick and easy chili made with ground turkey, sweet potatoes and spices – the perfect weeknight meal. It has just the right amount of spice to compliment the sweet potatoes without being too spicy for those of you who prefer a milder chili (you can of course bump up the heat if you wish).

I served this with some sweet potato chips which I found in the grocery store and set out some chopped cilantro, scallions, sour cream and cheddar on the side as optional toppings. Because this has no beans, it's perfect for picky eaters (my youngest daughter is not a fan) and it's also gluten-free and Paleo-friendly. This will be a part of my regular rotation, I highly recommend this one… enjoy!!
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Blueberry Banana Oatmeal Smoothie

If you're looking for a heart healthy, dairy-free breakfast loaded with fiber you can eat on the run, this is it!

In South America, it's common to drink avena, a delicious oatmeal shake usually made with whole milk, cinnamon and sugar. My oldest daughter loves it, you can see my original recipe here. I've made it with pumpkin, but I was curious to see what would happen if I used unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze almond milk instead, along with blueberries and banana. The outcome was really good, I added some raw sugar to sweeten it, but you could even use stevia or whatever sweetener you would normally use.

This is best if you make it and drink it right away. If you only need one serving, cook all the oatmeal in water as instructed below, but use only half of the cooked oatmeal in the blender and save the other half for the next day.

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Grilled Chicken with Black Bean Mango Salsa

Grilled chicken breast, seasoned with cumin and spices and topped with a fresh salsa made with sweet mango, protein-rich black beans and lots of lime and cilantro for flavor.

Let's face it, grilled chicken can be pretty boring, but not if you serve it with this zesty salsa. You may want to even make this salsa on it's own, it makes a fantastic dip if you serve it with chips – seriously good! Sometimes, I even throw in some diced avocado – yum!

This is perfect to make for a weeknight dinner, it's quick and light, high in fiber, protein, and gluten-free.
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