Breakfast

Detoxifying Green Smoothie

January 26, 2020 by admin Leave a Comment

Today I’m sharing my favourite go to smoothie of the moment. I love to make smoothies for breakfast because they’re filling yet lights and I can pack them with vegetables. I like to get a good amount of nutrition in for breakfast. Then if I have to grab something quick for lunch that inst very healthy it’s not as important.

This smoothie is packed with vegetables. Spinach, cucumber and even some riced cauliflower. You can’t taste the spinach or the cauliflower and the fresh flavour the cucumber adds pairs really nicely with the fruit.

I like fresh oranges in this smoothie, it pairs so nicely with the cucumber. Plus the citrus really brightens your morning. This smoothie also has fresh ginger. I promise it won’t taste like ginger but it adds just a tiny zing that enhances the citrus flavour. If you like your smoothies sweet add a pitted date or two. I love to use them as a natural sweetener.

Ingredients

Oranges – Vitamin C
Spinach – Iron & Calcium
Cauliflower – Vitamin K
Ginger – Reduces Inflammation
Dates – Potassium
Chia Seeds – Omega 3 & Fibre
Almond Milk – Low Glycemic

If you are lucky enough to have a high speed blender (this one is on my wish list!) you should be able to get all these ingredients nice and smooth. Just blend on a medium to low speed for a few minutes. If you are like me and have a standard blender I’d recommend peeling your cucumbers before you blend. Just like a high powered blender blend the smoothie on a low to medium speed for a few minutes. The hardest item to blend is the chia seeds. Personally there so tiny that I don’t mind if they don’t fully blend into the smoothie, but I have a few tips if they bother you. My first tip is to hydrate your chia seeds with some water over night. About 1 cup of water to 2 tbsp of chia seeds. Then when you’re ready to make your smoothie blend the chia seeds on a very low speed before adding other ingredients. Then continue to make the smoothie as usual.

More Smoothies: Peach Mango Green Smoothie / Superfood Smoothie

I hope you enjoy this smoothie as much as I do.

Danielle xo

Detoxifying Green Smoothie

A delicious citrus flavoured green smoothie packed with nutritious vegetables. Perfect for breakfast.

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Total Time 5

Servings: 2 smoothies

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

2 oranges, peeled and quartered
1/2 cucumber, roughly chopped
1/2 cup riced cauliflower
2 cups spinach
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled
1 cup water
1 cup almond milk, unsweetened
2 tbsp chia seeds
1 date, pitted

Method

Add all ingredients to the blender and run on low to medium low speed until smooth (about 2 minutes).

Healthy Breakfast Cookies

November 13, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Today we’re talking breakfast! I love breakfast, but during the week I need to keep things fast and simple. I’m sure you can all relate, leaving early to commute to the office doesn’t leave much time for breakfast. And that brings us to todays recipe, breakfast cookies. Sounds good right?

So these cookies are super tasty, but I refuse to eat un healthy food for breakfast, so I knew I had to make these taste good while still being full of nutrients. These cookies have oats, whole wheat flour, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cranberries and raisins. All of those tasty ingredients get mixed with mashed banana, almond butter, maple syrup and almond milk to create a delicious dough. Oh and theres a few chocolate chips thrown in there for good measure! Mix all of the ingredients together to create a dough and bake for 12-14 minutes!

These turned out so much better then I ever expected! Believe me I was skeptical, but they were so yummy! They’re filling, nutrient dense, full of fibre and protein. Grab one or two on your way out the door for a great on the go breakfast!

Healthy Breakfast Cookies

Delicious and nutritious cookies packed with oats, chia, nut butters and dried fruit.

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 14

Total Time 24

Servings: 12 cookies

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup rasins
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
1 banana, mashed
1/4 cup almond butter
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup almond milk
1/4 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
In a medium sized bowl mix together oats, flour, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, chia seeds, cranberries, raisins, chocolate chips, cinnamon and salt.
In a small bowl whisk banana, almond butter, maple syrup and almond milk together.
Pour wet ingredients into the dry, stir to combine.
Form into 12 cookies and bake for 12-14 minutes. Cool and enjoy!

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

October 14, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all are enjoying your holiday weekend with family and lots of pumpkin pie! Today I thought I would share my Pumpkin Pie Smoothie. It’s creamy delicious, tastes like desert, but packed with healthy ingredients. Sweetened with maple syrup and it’s entirely dairy free! So yummy it can pass as breakfast or dessert!

For this recipe I use pumpkin puree, this is the unsweetened pure mashed pumpkin. That’s what you want for pretty much every recipe out there. We will add our own spices and sweetener. Pumpkin is full of Vitamin A and Vitamin C, it’s also super nutrient dense so it’s perfect for a smoothie.

I use a frozen banana in this recipe to keep the smoothie creamy and super cold. You won’t really taste it but it adds natural sweetness and keeps things cold. The sweetener for this recipe is maple syrup, being Canadian maple syrup screams Thanksgiving for me, but you could toss in a date or two if you’re really watching your sugar source. And of course no pumpkin pie would be complete without a little pumpkin pie spice, here’s a link on how to make your own blend if you can’t find it in the store.

Last but not least lets talk dairy, now something you don’t know is I’m actually about 80-90% dairy free. I cut dairy for my skin, but theres still a few things I can’t give up, like cheese. So I only have dairy when it’s truly worth it to me, like on holidays or in my very favourite dishes. Since we eat at other peoples homes so much this time of year I’m strict on dairy when I’m cooking for myself. This recipe is make with almond milk, coconut yogurt (this is the best brand I’ve found!) and coconut whipped cream ( I use this one, so yummy). Of course it will taste delicious with dairy products, but I thought I’d share just incase you struggle with dairy as well.

As for the process for this recipe, well it’s pretty simple. Dump, blend, top and enjoy!

My husband was super skeptical of pumpkin in a smoothie, would it taste good, would it be too healthy tasting, or to make it delicious would it be so sugary that it really shouldn’t be eaten at breakfast? In the end he was really impressed!

This really is a must try for the fall and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

The creamy, delicious flavour of pumpkin pie without the guilt. A perfect festive breakfast, or a guilt free dessert!

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Prep Time 5

Total Time 5

Servings: 2 small smoothies

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup dairy free yogurt (I use coconut yogurt)
1/2 frozen banana
1 tbsp real maple syrup (more or less to taste)
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup nut or dairy free milk (I used almond)
prepared coconut whipped cream (optional)

Method

Add pumpkin, yogurt, banana, maple syrup, spices, and milk to a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and top with coconut whipped cream if desired.

Notes

This recipe makes two small smoothies, or one large one. When I make this for breakfast I have one large one without whip.

Optional add ins/swaps:

If you eat dairy feel free to use regular yogurt and milk.
Swap maple syrup for a date if you want a more natural sugar source.
Add flax, chia or hemp hearts to increase nutrition.
Protein powder can be added if desired.

Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes

May 16, 2019 by Danielle 2 Comments

Light airy and delicious pancakes…

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. Now of course most mornings I’m gulping down a smoothie on my way to work, but on the weekends it’s a whole other story. I always try to make a special breakfast at least one morning of the weekend. We flip back and forth between sweet and savoury. Sometimes it’s eggs, bacon and hash browns and other days it’s waffles or pancakes.

Today’s pancake recipe is for those who like things on the sweeter side. This recipe is inspired by my dad. He loves lemons, he is even trying to grow lemons in his backyard. His next crop is expected to be a big one and I’m really hoping he will share. Anyway he loves all things lemon, citrus and tart flavours. He actually made similar recipe to this on for me once and it was pretty tasty.

These pancakes have ricotta, lemon, vanilla and lots of blueberries. The ricotta adds a really nice fluffy texture to the pancakes. Lemon juice flavours the pancakes with just enough tart and sweet flavour. Now of course these pancakes have all the delicious components of a classic pancake recipe, and by that I mean butter and vanilla. In my opinion all pancakes require vanilla and copious amounts of butter. Once the batter is prepared (be sure not to over mix) fold in those juicy blueberries. So yummy!

Serve these pancakes with butter, real maple syrup an a squeeze of lemon juice! Such a delicious combo and the perfect weekend breakfast. Give them a try!!

Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes

Yields: 18 pancakes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour
3 tbsp Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Milk (I used 2% but any dairy or non dairy works)
3/4 cup Ricotta Cheese (I had whole milk ricotta on hand but you could use any)
3 large Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Lemon Juice
Zest of One Lemon
2 tbsp Butter, melted
3/4 cup Blueberries (I prefer fresh but frozen works in a pinch)

Directions:

In a large bowl whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together, set aside. In a medium bowl whisk milk, ricotta, eggs and vanilla. Once combined add lemon juice, lemon zest and butter to the wet ingredients, the wet ingredients will curdle. Don’t be alarmed the curdling is normal and it won’t affect your batter.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Fold until just combined. Make sure to keep some lumps, a lump batter makes a better pancake. Fold blueberries into batter.

Heat a fry pan or electric griddle over medium/medium high heat. Pout 1/3 cup batter onto the skillet and cook on one side until golden brown and bubbles begin to form on the top. Flip and cook on the other side until golden brown and cooked though.

Serve with butter, maple syrup and a squeeze of lemon.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy.

Sun-dried Tomato Spinach and Goat Cheese Quiche

April 12, 2019 by Danielle Leave a Comment

Flavourful springtime quiche

Is your family more of an Easter brunch or Easter dinner family? We’re both lol! I love quiche for brunch. I’m a fan of a savoury brunch over sweet. I picture servings this quiche with a simple salad, or my lemon parmesan green beans. Add some homemade cinnamon buns, fresh fruit and yogurt with granola to really round out the buffet.

And if you need a dessert for Easter how about carrot cake cupcakes?

Now lets get into this delicious quiche recipe!

This quiche starts with my grandma’s classic pie dough recipe. You’ve seen it before for my chicken pot pie and my grandma’s famous berry pie! Today we’re using half of her recipe as the base of our crust.

The base of this quiche is so simple; just eggs and milk!

To flavour the quiche we are adding garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach and crumbled goat cheese. Such a yummy combination.

After blind baking the pie shell pour the filling into the shell and bake,

Once baked this quiche is great cold or warm. Super delicious! And entertaining worthy!

Sun-dried Tomato Spinach and Goat Cheese Quiche

Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients:

Pie Dough:

1 1/3 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Salt
1/4 cup Vegetable Shortening, cold
1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, cold
4 to 8 tbsp Ice Water

Filling:

1 tsp Butter
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
2 cups Spinach
4 Eggs
1 cup Whole Milk
1/3 cup Sun-dried Tomatoes, drained and chopped
4 ounces Goat Cheese, crumbled
Salt & Pepper, to taste

In a medium bowl whisk together flour and salt. Using a pastry cutter cut butter and shortening into flour until combined and mixture resembles peas and sand. Slowly add ice water one tablespoon at a time until a ball forms. Form into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Roll pastry into a 9 inch disk. Line your pie dish. Crimp the edges of the crust. Prick the crust with a fork. Place a piece of parchment paper over the crust. Fill with dry beans or pie weights. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

In a fry pan over low heat add butter, spinach and garlic. Sauté until it spinach begins to wilt. Place in a small bowl to cool.

In a large bowl whisk together eggs and milk. Add sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, goat cheese, salt and pepper to the egg mixture. Fold together. Pour filling into pie shell.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until the crust starts to brown and the centre of the quiche is set. Allow to cool slightly before serving, 5-10 minutes.

Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction and Danielle at Home.

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

March 3, 2019 by Danielle 4 Comments

A healthy, but decadent make ahead breakfast.

Ok guys this recipe is a real winner. It is decadent, sweet, filling and healthy. Whole grains, unsweetened coconut milk, high protein greek yogurt, a touch of honey and fresh mango make this breakfast fast filling and delicious. I was shocked how good this tasted. How had I never though to add coconut before? I love overnight oats for the ease and convenience. You can even prep a few days worth and have breakfast to go all week.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now you know I love a fast recipe, especially for breakfast. it brings me so much joy to experiment and make delicious recipes that take a little extra effort. But that isn’t always realistic. Life is just busy. And I just cant bring myself to make some elaborate breakfast during the week. Honestly I rarely do it on a regular weekend. These kind of delicious make ahead breakfasts are perfect. They feel special but are really simple. And just freakin delicious!

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

Yields: 2-3 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup Rolled Oats
1 cup Canned Coconut Milk
1 cup Coconut Greek Yogurt (I used 2%)
1 tbsp Honey
1 tsp Vanilla
4 tbsp Unsweetened Coconut Chips, toasted preferred
1/2 Mango, chopped

Directions:

In a bowl combine rolled oats, coconut milk, greek yogurt, honey and vanilla in a medium bowl. Transfer to an air tight storage container and place in the fridge overnight.

If you can’t find pre toasted coconut chips (or flakes) you can make your own by baking then on a sheet pan for 5-10 minutes at 325°F. Once bake cool and store in an air tight container for up to a week.

When ready to eat, place oats in a serving bowl. Top with toasted coconut and chopped mango. Enjoy!

Adapted from Eat Drink Love.

Breakfast

Detoxifying Green Smoothie

Ingredients

Method

Healthy Breakfast Cookies

Ingredients

Method

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Ingredients

Method

Notes

Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes

Sun-dried Tomato Spinach and Goat Cheese Quiche

Mango Coconut Overnight Oats

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