Banana - Squash Oat Bran Muffins

Hey there. Summer is on its way out and fall is almost here ~ so I have a special chocolatey treat or breakfast recipe that fits both. Its light, healthy, tastes great, and hello has chocolate! If your summer has been anything like mine with trips, fun, kids being home all day from school, vacation or people visiting you on their vacation.... you need some chocolate. Goes great with coffee - just sayin'. 

I haven't blogged in awhile. I have been just busy with life  kiddos, moving, house hunting, and medical stuff with our littlest smile. Our youngest has a complicated medical history. About a year ago we moved our family across the united states to experience a different life style, snow, and history on the east coast. It's hard to want to make new recipes when all you want to do is collapse into a pile of goo into bed as soon it seems late enough after the kids are asleep.  

I have this really great muffin recipe though - perfect for those beginning early back to school mornings that my friends are already having to deal with in Arizona & those upcoming here in New York. 

See you need this. Like I need to stop taking food pictures with my cell phone instead of my nice camera. Ugh. Sorry. I haven't blogged in awhile and it shows. At least the food is good. 

Getting kids ready for school is really hard. This will make it easier. Breakfast will be done. You can make them the night before and just throw it at them as they are grumbling their way to the bus stop or into the back seat. Goes great with yogurt or an apple. They can nibble it as they are "remembering" that form they were supposed to give you days ago crumbled from the bottom of their bag. Is that a boy thing or do all kids have this remembering problem? 

YOU have to try it. Seriously I know I have made a bran muffin before on this blog but this version is way better and since I am obsessed with yellow squash and zucchini it totally works for my family - ahem - especially since they don't know its in there? Trust me. Its good. The veg is clearly undetectable. 

But oat bran muffins you may ask? Why oat bran muffins? I know I know "bran muffins" have a certain unsexy vibe clinging them to them but healthy is the new cool. My husband hates it when I say "I know". Lol. So yeah. Just think of them as banana chocolate chip and you'll be fine. I just want those who are looking for a healthier approach to find it easily. 

Just incase you were wondering bran is actually pretty cool. It is the reason why brown rice is brown. Its the outside layer of the grain that is otherwise milled off - which also explains why brown rice takes so long to cook. More layers means more cooking time to soften and expand.

Banana - Squash Oat Muffins - 

adapted from my other recipe which you can find here.

Active time: 30 minutes

Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes 

Makes 8 - 10 muffins

INGREDIENTS:

2 large eggs 
1 cup / 2 medium very over ripe bananas (the darker the better - think black)
1 cup pureed squash* See note below
1 cup unprocessed wheat bran (do not substitute with bran cereal)
1 Tbs oil
1 Tbs vanilla bean paste or extract
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup whole wheat white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon heaping ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup chocolate chips (as many as you want) 
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 Tbs milk if you think it needs more moisture 

Turbinado sugar (optional) sprinkle a pinch on each one for flare and fun

Note: To make squash puree its very easy. Wash and then cut a smaller summer yellow squash into 8-10 rounds. Put it in a glass or microwavable bowl with 1/4-1/2 cup of water and steam it in the microwave for approx 4 minutes. If its soft when you check it at 3 or 4 minutes then its done. Carefully pull the bowl out of the microwave using oven mitts and dump the entire thing in the blender. Blend until smooth and tahhh dahhh you have squash puree. Super easy. Super cheap. Super healthy. Super undetectable. And unlike its cousin the zucchini there isn't even green specks to give it away. It blends right in! Lol. Sorry bad joke. If you still want to do this and don't have a microwave you can do it in a small pan on the stove. Or if you want to skip this step and just buy a container of pureed squash from the baby food isle - its there and it will cost you about $1-1.50 and you'll need 2. 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
2. Coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray - with or without liners. I usually don't use liners unless I am baking for friends or the freezer. 
3. In a large bowl or stand mixer whisk eggs and brown sugar until smooth. Add the bananas, squash puree, wheat bran, oil and vanilla paste. Whisk until it is homogeneous.
4. Into the same bowl, measure & whisk in all remaining dry ingredients (except the chocolate chips) one at a time. Don't over mix. If you are using a stand mixer be careful. Grains will toughen if overworked. Tough dough = dry muffins. 
5. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes. 
6. Scoop or pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups until batter is gone. The muffin cups should be full. They make really good size muffins. 
7. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched lightly, approximately 18-20 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen edges with a small knife and turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

Easy. Peasy. And now lets go enjoy whatever is left of summer! 
Thanks for stopping by.
Stephanie

Veggie Burritos with Zucchini Guacamole

Hello September. I love you September. We are almost in my fav season of the entire year. Almost... It was still 100 degrees F at my house today but the end is in sight. Yay! If you are still in the trenches of the end of summer I got the perfect meal for ya. Keep reading. Its good. I promise.

 On warmer days or all summer long I often go for lighter dishes that require less heating up the kitchen you know like having a sandwich night. This burrito definitely fits the ideal and is a great use for leftover beans and rice from other yummy Mexican meals. 

Picture layers of crunchy & creamy guac with hints of citrus, fluffy brown rice and filling nutritious black beans, crisp lettuce, with smoky melted cheese wrapped up in a oversized tortilla wrap. Yum! It tastes so good you won't even care that its healthy. SO many fresh flavors and fun textures. 

But the real reason you should make this is because the zucchini, freshly and very finely diced, adds another flavor of freshness I have never had in guacamole before and actually never had it raw before. It makes this guacamole stunningly good. You don't taste it and say "oh I taste zucchini" but it does stop you in your tracks and say "wow that tastes bright and fresh". I love guacamole and I have had EVERYWHERE. Trust me. This might be the best I have ever had (ahem except the one I already have on this blog with bacon it in... okay I have a soft spot in my heart for yummy salty bacon). Seriously if you don't make the burrito you gotta try this guac with your next bag of chips, cut up veggies, tacos, quesadillas.... or just with a spoon? 

For a fun kid friendly variation you could even add some crunchy chips or fried corn tortillas cut into strips into the burrito. The veggie burrito idea comes from  Naturally Ella . I just edited it a bit because I lived in cali for 8-9 years and you can't make guac without a chili pepper. Its just the way it is. So I am passing it on with a few helpful touches. Check it out. 

Veggie Burritos w/ Zucchini Guac

cooking time + prep = about an hour*

*If using already cooked brown rice this time is shortened to a very quick 15 minutes!

Makes 2 large burritos 

(my kiddo was full with half of one with a handful of tortilla chips) 

Would be great with a piece of a corn on the cob

Ingredients:

• For the guac:
• 1 & 1/2 ripe avocados
• 3 Tbs finely diced red onion
• 1/4 cup minced cilantro
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4- 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 Tbs lemon juice or half of a lemon juiced
• 2 Tbs orange juice or juice of half of an orange 
• 1/2 of a medium zucchini very finely diced (about 1 cup) 
• 1/2 of a poblano pepper (for mild) or half or whole jalapeño pepper with the seeds and membranes removed (for more heat) finely diced

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• For the burritos: 
•  2 large whole wheat flour tortillas or spinach ones* (as seen in the pic) 
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
• 1/2 cup cooked black beans, drained and rinsed if using canned
• 1/2- 3/4 cup shredded Smoked Cheddar or Smoked Jack cheese (I used 1/2 cup but was not very cheesy if you want a stronger cheese taste go for 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup shredded or very finely sliced ribbons of lettuce

optional: A diced up roma tomato and a handful of sprouts would be awesome additions I just didn't add in but will next time. 

*Whole wheat would be healthier but I was just using up what I had on hand... sadly the spinach ones weren't as healthy as I thought they would be, despite the name

To assemble:

1. Make the guacamole.  Add all the ingredients into a bowl starting with the avocado so you can use a spoon to get the avocado out and a potato masher or a fork to get it to the consistency you like - chunky or smoother. Taste as you go to get the right amount of salt and heat - chili's differ in heat so I always do half the amount the recipe calls for, taste, and then add the rest if I want to. 

Tip: You can always increase the heat but its very hard to subdue it afterward. If you do find its hotter than you thought add more sweet things like a 1/4 tsp of sugar or more citrus juice and serve it with sour cream. Dairy and Sugar are good counterparts to heat. 

2. Assemble the burritos. In any order but this worked well for me:
1/4 of guac on each one
1/2 of the beans
1/2 of the cheese cheese
1/2 of the rice 
1/2 of the lettuce

3. Roll up the burritos tucking in the ends, and heat them in a dry pan over medium heat until they warm up completely and you get some nice brown spots on your tortilla. That will help melt the cheese, bind everything together. This took about 5 minutes for me. 

4. Serve them with some tortilla chips, or corn on the cob, and/or salsa with the remaining delicious zucchini guacamole. 

5. Enjoy the rest of you day... and possibly eat dessert because not only did you have an amazingly tasty meal you ate incredibly healthy! 

Thanks for stopping by my Arizona kitchen

Stephanie

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Spicy Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

I am back from my little break. Feeling much better. Thanks. I wanted to share this before I jumped back into my challenge of 30 Rachael Ray recipes. This recipe is from one of my favorite bloggers, Lindsay. She posted this yummy pasta mac and cheese recipe and her pictures immediately made me hungry. But as I was making it I was like you know this would taste better if it had a zing or punch to it. I blame it on football season - all those chip and salsa first downs... lol. So i upped the ante a little bit by giving it some heat and adding all my favorite things more cheese, more fat, and more veggies. What recipe doesn't need a touch more bacon? Love that stuff. Its also safe to say I have a good working relationship with cheese.  So here goes it. Happy Pumpkin eating!

 The recipe 

Serves 4 comfortably

prep + cook time = 20-25 minutes 
(including time for bacon to cook & water to start boiling)

2 cups of veggie pasta rotini 

3 large carrots, peeled if you want, or just washed well and finely diced ( 1 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup of pumpkin puree
1 clove of garlic, minced

1/4 cup or 6 green onions, sliced

1/4 cup (6 pieces) of cooked crisp crumbled bacon 

2 oz cream cheese (not fat free)
1/2 tsp salt + 1 tsp for the pasta

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 cup of evaporated milk, fat free
1/4 - 1/2 cup of pepperjack cheese *

Step 1: Cook pasta as per directions on the box with 1 tsp salt. Half way through cooking time add in the chopped carrots (no more than 5 minutes so they stay tender crisp)

Step 2: Drain pasta the return it to the same pot on the stove over low. Add in all the rest of the ingredients except green onions. 

Step 3: Stir the pot until all the cheese is melted and it looks like mac and cheese. Taste add additional salt or/and pepper if needed. 


*Note: I have an approximate amount of pepperjack cheese listed because this brand was spicier than most and I didn't put it in my son's mac & cheese. So I scooped his bowl up and then left the pot on low while i let the rest of the cheese melt into the remaining pasta for everyone else. I am telling you this because I do look for family friendly - kid friendly recipes and want to be real on how things really work in my kitchen. 


Step 4: Sprinkle each bowl you serve up with green onions for texture, color and freshness :)

the kid's bowl - hes not super fond the purple color but it looks good in this picture with the orange veg.

Enjoy!  We really liked this meal and I enjoyed how easy it was to incorporate veggies into homemade mac & cheese (a staple at my house) Next time I might cut half of the carrots out and put in some frozen peas. I really like the whole green orange october color themed bowl I stumbled onto :) 

Best of September

Hi there. This best of September blog entry is coming a day late but I was busy making some pumpkin coffee cake yesterday and welll got distracted. I will have to tell you about that later. Good recipe... will be great next time when I add in some nuts. 

Have I mentioned how much fun September was? It was pretty warm here so our first outside bbq was only a few days ago. But that didn't stop me from making some yummy pumpkin-y, zucchini and other great fall foods over the month 

Here take a look at the top 10 recipes (according to most viewed) and my top 3 personal favorites. I heart you guys. The top two recipes viewed were Mexican food! :) 
Click on any of the titles below to see the recipe. 

#1 Most viewed: Flour-Free, Corn Free, Sugar Free Taco Seasoning

#2 Runner up (only behind by 10 views): Flour-free, Easy Enchilada Sauce

#3 Third place Crunchy Tarragon Chicken

#4 Avocado Tuna Bacon Salad (w/homemade bacon mayo!!)

#5 Turkish Pear Coffee Bread

#6 Oatmeal Honey Rolls (need to make these again)

#7 Brown Sugar Zucchini Coffee Cake

#8 Pumpkin Spinach Quesadillas

#9 Easy Braised Veggies in Cream Sauce

#10 Chicken Biscuits & Gravy

 My family's top 3 favorites:

1. Brown sugar zucchini coffee cake 

2. Crunchy Tarrgon Chicken - Straight up good chicken

3. Tied for 3rd place: Both are: Oatmeal Honey Rolls & the Homemade Bacon Mayo (in the Avocado Tuna Bacon Salad)

Cheers to October! Enjoy the fall 

From my kitchen to yours