Slow Cooked BBQ Cranberry Chicken

Another delicious crockpot recipe! You might have all the ingredients sitting around in your pantry and fridge right now. Literally dump them all in, then set it and forget it. Best solution for people who want homemade meals, but don't have a lot of time to cook!

Found this recipe on www.whoneedsacape.com and just modified the amount of chicken used.

Slow Cooker BBQ Cranberry Chicken 

2lbs chicken breast

1 can whole cranberry sauce 

1 cup BBQ sauce

1/2 cup chopped onion

1. Sprays our crockpot with cooking spray. Add all ingredients. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours. 

Tofu Breakfast Scramble

I had an amazing tofu scramble for breakfast when I was in California a few weeks ago, and wanted to recreate it. I found this recipe on www.itdoesnttastelikechicken.com and the only thing I changed was the type of tofu and the type of salt used (because it was harder to find).

If you're not usually into tofu, I still encourage you to try this scramble. It's heartier than you may think, and has tons of flavor!

Tofu Breakfast Scramble

Ingredients:

Spice Mix:
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 3/4 teaspoon tumeric
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Tofu Scramble:
- 2 boxes of Naysoya Lite Firm Tofu (or regular firm tofu*)
- 1/2 medium white onion
- 1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms of choice
- 1 red pepper
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 teaspoon olive oil

Directions:
1. Add all of the spice mix ingredients into a bowl and stir to combine.
2. Chop the red pepper, onions, garlic, and mushrooms.
3. Place a large pan over medium high heat and add the olive oil. When hot, add the onions, peppers, and mushrooms and saute for about 8 minutes until everything just starts to brown. Add the garlic and saute for 2 more minutes.
4. Add the tofu blocks and smash apart with a spoon or spatula. Don't mash it completely - you want some good chunks in there.
5. Add the spice mix and black beans and stir everything up. Heat through for about another 8 minutes. Serve!

Maple Oatmeal Protein Muffins

I made this muffins yesterday as a snack for my brother's weight lifting competition. Glad I did because we were there FOREVER. It was so much fun though- so proud of him!

These muffins have a warm maple flavor that made my apartment smell like a bakery in the Fall. Super healthy option for a light breakfast, or mid-day snack.

Maple Oatmeal Protein Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup oatmeal
1 scoop vanilla whey protein (I use Cellucor)
3 tablespoons granulated stevia
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1/4 cup lite maple syrup (NOT sugar-free. You can also use regular if you prefer.)
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon maple extract

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 F. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray.

2. In a food processor or blender, mix the oatmeal, whey protein, granulated stevia, and baking powder. Place in a bowl and set aside.

3. Add the egg, syrup, apple sauce, oil, and extract to the food processor. Blend until smooth. Add the dry ingredients back into the food processor and blend until smooth.

4. Add the batter to the muffin tins. Cook about 12-15 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

Optional Cream Cheese Filling:

Combine 6 tablespoons low-fat or fat-cream cheese with 1 teaspoon maple syrup. Blend until smooth. Using a knife, cut a small circle in the muffin (do not go all the way through). Add the filling to the hole (I like to place my filling in a plastic bag and cut off a small corner at the end to "pipe" my filling).

Bison Bolognese

If using ground turkey or ground chicken is a bit of a stretch for you when replacing beef, you should definitely give ground bison a try. Not only does bison taste great, but it has less fat and more iron than beef.

This bolognese is super easy. I served it over spaghetti squash for a take on "Pasta Bolognese".

Bison Bolognese

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, chopped
1 lb lean bison meat
28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil

Directions:

1. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and coat with cooking spray. Add the garlic and onions and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the bison meat. Cook until no longer pink, stirring and crumbling occasionally.

3. Add the crushed tomatoes, oregano and basil. Bring to a boil then cover and reduce heat. Simmer 30-40 minutes. Serve!

Double Chocolate Protein Pancakes

Double Chocolate Protein Pancakes 

Ingredients:

-1/2 cup finely chopped zucchini (I chop it in my Ninja Food Processor)
- 1/4 cup oatmeal
- 2 tablespoons chocolate whey protein powder (I use Cellucor)
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon psyllium husk
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 egg whites
- 1 packet stevia
- unsweetened almond milk, as needed

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender. Add enough almond milk to keep a thick batter.
2. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and coat with cooking spray. Once hot, add about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Cover and cook until the edges set. Flip, and cook until done (about another 3-5 minutes).

Top with your favorite toppings! I love Greek yogurt and peanut butter :)