Banana Bread, 8 Week Friendly!

Banana Bread, 8 Week Friendly! 

This recipe was brought to us courtesy of Heather Larson, 8 Weeks Contender.  Thanks Heather!!

"I attended a birthday party this past weekend, and after having to pass on the cupcakes and ice-cream I came home and needed something to make my sweet tooth happy.  I have big bag of overripe bananas in my freezer, so I thought, banana bread!  Of course I needed to make it friendly to the 8 week challenge, so here is what I did.  In place of the oil I used sugar free applesauce, and in place of the brown sugar I used honey.  Oh, and I also used whole wheat flour.  It turned out really good - I didn't miss the oil or brown sugar at all!"

**If you make two loaves you can give one away and call it your random act of kindness for the day!

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar free applesauce
• 3/4 cup honey
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 mashed overripe bananas

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together applesauce and honey. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Spinach Smoothie

Spinach Smoothie

"We do a lot of green smoothies in my family. You get a serving of veggies along with your serving or 2 of fruits. Here's a great recipe that I use.

In my Vita Mix Blender I do the following:
4 C of Spinach, packed in there really good :)
Then I add fresh orange juice to just cover the spinach.
(We just do water now, since we are used to the green smoothies and don't need it so sweet.)
Next, I add 1-2 frozen or fresh bananas.
After that I fill the blender up with frozen strawberries or any other fruit of your choice.
I also add about 1/4c. of raw honey or raw agave syrup.
(You may want to omit this once you get used to this type of smoothie)

This feeds most of my family of 7- sometimes I have to make more :) You really can't taste the spinach, it just gives it a beautiful green color. Once you are used to the spinach try other greens like collard or kale. Then I blend and blend and blend...So delicious!"

Thanks to Missy from Raw Honey for sharing this smoothie recipe with us!

Homemade Granola by Jana

I can hardly wait to give it a try! I love me some Greek Yogurt with nuts, fruit and honey mixed in. Im thinking this would be the PERFECT addition...

Homemade GranolaIn a large bowl:
8 cups oatmeal (...or I did 6 c oatmeal, 1 c unsweetened coconut flakes, and 1 c Kashi cereal I had on hand... you can be creative with 2 of the 8 cups to give it some different texture)

In a sauce pan combine:
3/4 c agave
1/2 c canola oil
1/2 c water
1/4 c honey
1/2 t salt
Cook til warm, then add:1 t vanilla1 t cinnamon
Pour sauce over dry ingredients. (I don't pour it all at once. Pour half, then mix well. Then pour the rest and mix well). Spread over 2 cookie sheets.
Bake at 300 for 30-40 mins then take it out and stir it. (At this point I sprinkled it with a light sprinkle of Splenda and more cinnamon) Turn the oven down to 200, switch the cookie sheets (top to the bottom, bottom to the top) and cook it for another 30-45 mins (until your house starts to smell really yummy). Leave it on the counter for a few hours, then put it in a air tight container and you're set for some yummy snack and yogurt parfaits :)

Banana Oatmeal Smoothie

Almonds, cooked oatmeal, bananas and yogurt meet up in your blender for a power breakfast. Drink this Banana Oatmeal Smoothie before your morning exercise routine and you’ll have the energy you need to get through your workout.

Ingredients:

• 2   whole Chiquita Bananas (best with brown flecks on peel)
• 2   cups Ice
• 1/3   cup Yogurt - preferably Greek yogurt flavored with honey
• 1/2   cup Cooked oatmeal
• 1/3   cup Almonds

Instructions for:

Quick Chiquita Banana Oatmeal Smoothie Recipe

Pour all ingredients in blender pouring ice in last. Blend on high for 30 seconds or until smoothie thickens.

Nutrition Information Per Serving:

Calories 380; Total Fat 15 g (Sat 2 g, Trans 0 g, Poly 4 g, Mono 8 g); Cholesterol 5 mg; Sodium 35 mg; Potassium 690 mg; Total Carbohydrates 53 g; Dietary Fiber 9 g; Total Sugars 19 g; Protein 12 g. Percent Daily Value: Vitamin A 2%; Vitamin B6 25%; Vitamin C 20%; Vitamin D 0%; Calcium 15%, Iron 15%.

Recipe courtesy of Chiquita Bananas!

2 dinners

My sister Jana has done all 3 of our challenges and if you know her you know she is pretty much amazing...Im a lucky gal to call her my sister! She sent us a couple yummy recipes that I wanted to post, but I also wanted to post this one that she sent our way the last challenge!

During last challenge one of our participants Liz Layton made these for her when she had her baby! They are 100% challenge friendly and seriously so so delicious!! Give 'em a try

(not actual picture)

Honey Lime Enchiladas1.5 lbs. chicken or pork, cooked and shredded
⅓ cup honey
¼ cup lime juice (about 2 limes)
1 Tbsp. chili powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1 4 oz. can diced green chiles
2 10 oz. cans green enchilada sauce
Equal parts mozzarella & cheddar cheese, grated (monterey jack works fine)
8-10 whole wheat tortillas
After chicken/pork is cooked and shredded, combine with green chiles, honey, lime juice, chili & garlic powder. Let "marinate" in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Grease a 9x13 pan and pour a little bit of the enchilada sauce to coat the bottom of the pan. Fill your tortillas with chicken mixture and a little cheese. Roll up and place seam side down in the pan. Repeat. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top and sprinkle more cheese on top. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes and then turn on the broiler for a couple minutes so it gets nice and brown. Serve with sour cream, diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce and salsa, if desired.

Okay this last one is one of my personal favorites too. When I had my 3rd baby my incredible mom made this for us one night and I fell in love. YUM!

(this is not an actual picture of this recipe-you will want to use A LOT more herbs than pictured. And NO WHITE RICE, of course)

Herbed Mustard Salmon

olive oil

salmon

salt & pepper

dijon mustard
diced garlic
fresh herbs (I usually use cilantro, parsley, and basil because they are the most readily available)

Coat pan with olive oil than add fish. Salt & Pepper, then spread mustard generously. Top with diced garlic and A LOT of fresh herbs. Bake at 300 degrees for 30 min or until fish is flaky.

There you have it!

And check back soon for some yummy Quinoa Recipes that were submitted by another Challenge Participant!

Greek Yogurt Parfait

Seriously, you HAVE to try this one!!

 Mix 1 cup of plain Greek Yogurt with a handful of fresh strawberries or other fruit of your choice, a handful of chopped walnuts, and a drizzle of honey for a seriously DELICIOUS and totally challenge worthy breakfast, snack, or dessert.  SO.  GOOD.

Tomato, Cucumber, Avocado, and Black Bean Salad

This one's a favorite in my family (coming to you from Karli)

Combine - 2 medium tomatoes, 2 peeled and chopped cucumbers, 2 chopped avocados, 1/2 chopped red onion, 1 can of drained and rinsed black beans, 2 tbsp. chopped cilantro (optional), juice of 1 lime, 1 tsp. cumin, and salt and pepper to taste.  Toss in a bowl and serve alone as a side dish, on top of greens for a salad, or as a "relish" on chicken or fish.