Cheesy Stuffed Sweet Peppers

This momma has been busy! But having fun at the same time. :)  My boss recently decided to start a non-profit organization that brings awareness to violence that's happening to our children around the world, also known as M.others A.gainst V.iolence.  She appointed me to head up the organization and so I have been planning our first event which will take place in November!! We are having a family festival, and it is going to be amazing! It's kinda crazy that I am planning and organizing a city festival all on my own. Very cool. :)  Anyways, enough about me and what's happening with work. Just needed to clarify that I have not given up on my cleaner recipes and food blog.

Tonight's dinner included a random creation inspired by stuffed peppers. Usually they contain beef, tons of salt, and a sauce of sorts.

Mine contains just a few simple ingredients and is incredibly easy to make.

Teaser photo now:

Did you know??
One small red, yellow or orange pepper provides three times the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C; way ahead of citrus! Red peppers stand out as one of the few foods that contain lycopene, a carotenoid that lowers the risk of various cancers, including prostate and cervical cancer. These crimson packages are also packed with beta-carotene, converted to vitamin A in the body and essential for night vision. Nature’s best source of zeaxanthin, a compound known to protect against cataracts and macular degeneration, can be found in orange peppers.
This is just a few facts about this delicious food!

Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 6 Peppers (you can easily double this recipe as needed)
• 1/4 cup of mozzarella (I also used the rest of the cheese stick my toddler didn't finish)
• 1/4 cup of cooked rice
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 1/2 tsp. of salt
• 1/2 tsp. of pepper
• 1 tsp. of dried parsley

Method:

1. Cook your rice.
2. Remove tops to your peppers and pull seeds out.
3. Once your rice is cooked, add all other ingredients and mix well.
4. Stuff the peppers.
5. Bake on 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

These little stuffed peppers are packed with flavor, super easy to make, filling, inexpensive to make, and very nutritious! They are also low in calories, fat, sodium...and high in essential vitamins and nutrients.  I hope you all enjoy this one! 

This dish serves perfectly as a side or even some yummy game day foods! :)

Strawberry Shortcake Parfait-Under 100 calories!

First of all, Happy Mother's Day! I hope all you mom's out there are having the best, most relaxing day!  

Today's recipe came to me after dinner a few minutes ago and I had to post it immediately! As you all know, it's strawberry season.  I have been getting the best strawberries lately and it inspired me to do something with them.  I've also been doing a pretty strict cleanse, so I have been craving something sweet all day.  

This recipe is very simple, very light, and very pleasing.  I will confess now before you read on, I did use a can of whipped cream from the dairy section in this recipe.  It has 15 calories, 0.5 fat grams and 1 gram of sugar.  Sure, it's not "healthy", but it's not unhealthy either.  :) There, I justified it! 

Ready for the teaser? 

Yes, it looks too good to be true! I know! I was shocked too when I did the math!

Ready for the recipe?

Cleaner Strawberry Shortcake Parfait:

Yields: 5 cupcake size shortcakes

·         1 cup oat flour
·         ½ cup almond milk
·         1 tsp. of vanilla
·         ¼ tsp. of baking soda
·         1 tsp. of baking powder
·         2 tbsp. agave nectar
·         1 tsp. lemon zest

What you will need in addition to these baking ingredients are:

• Fresh sliced strawberries
• 1 can of whipped cream from the dairy section

Line a muffin tin with 5 wrappers.

Mix all ingredients and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Done!

1 parfait consisting of 1 shortcake cupcake, 4 tablespoons of whipped cream from a can, and 3 strawberries sliced = 96 calories! 0 saturated fat! 6.6 grams of sugar! 2 grams of protein! 

The lemon zest in these cakes is heavenly! It adds a nice fresh flavor that you can't leave this ingredient out! I even suggest adding a touch of the lemon juice to the batter as well. Also, I cut my shortcake cupcake in half and added a few little bits on top as you can see:)

Under 100 calories! 0, yes that's a zero, saturated fat! Wow!

As always, enjoy friends!! I sure did!

Truffles Without The Trouble!

Truffles without the trouble is the absolute perfect way to describe these little balls of joy! They are simple, healthy and only contain 5 ingredients! Yes, Only 5! :)  If you have kept up with my blog and know who I am, you know that a.) I am a sugar addict, b.) I use a ton of oat flour, so be prepared, and c.) that I am a sugar addict. Ha!

I was sitting at home earlier today after a lovely visit with an old pal and started thinking about how much I'd love some chocolate truffles. Random, I know!  So, I then thought, what do I have in my pantry to play with? I knew I wanted to make it simple and healthy of course, but I didn't  have any chocolate on hand. So, like any normal person, I made some.

Ready for my usual teaser photo?

Yes. They were that good too. 

So, for the first time ever, I made truffles.  Then as I just sat down to write this blog, I Googled a traditional truffle recipe.  The recipe I came up with was one that took an hour to make. 

Who has that kind of time? Geez.  

These took 15-20 minutes at best.  The recipe I found also called for heavy cream-FAT, butter-FAT, corn syrup-TURNS INTO FAT, and 18 ounces of chocolate-FAT FAT FAT. Now, this did make 30 truffles, but dang people!  I know truffles are supposed to be decadent and rich desserts, but that's a little much. Now, I am no idiot. I know that THAT truffle would be AMAZING! Who am I kidding. Does my truffle compare in taste and lusciousness? No, I'm sure not, but my truffle will hopefully quench the desire for that fatty truffle that will leave you with regret. 

Ok, enough. Recipe time!

Yields 10 truffles

For the filling/center of truffle: 

• 2 tablespoons of all natural peanut butter (the kind that requires stirring)
• 1 tbsp of agave nectar
• 1 tbsp of melted virgin coconut oil
• 3/4 cup of oat flour (ground whole oats)

That's it.  Mix all ingredients until well blended.  Roll into little balls and sit on a plate.  Put in refrigerator for 10 minutes to allow them to set.  In the mean time make your chocolate.

 Chocolate:

• 1 tbsp of melted virgin coconut oil
• 1 tbsp of agave nectar
• 1 tbsp of cocoa powder

Mix until well blended.

Once the filling/center for the truffle has set in the refrigerator for 10 minutes and is hardened, remove and roll individually in the chocolate and return to the plate.  The chocolate will harden almost immediately because coconut oil will reform at about 72 degrees.  You could add some shredded coconut or maybe even dust some cocoa powder on top.  But I made mine just as I have described and they are magnificent!

Keep these refrigerated until eaten because coconut oil will melt at anything higher than 72 degrees and you'll just have some messy little desserts.

A few nutritional facts for all 10 Truffles:

Calories: 550

Sugar: 33 grams (from a natural source-Agave Nectar)

Only Good Healthy Fats from Coconut Oil and Natural Peanut Butter(I Promise)

As I have stated before, I highly recommend you doing your research on healthy fats.  Coconut oil does have a high number of saturated fat grams, 13 grams per serving.  BUT, these are good fats that actually allow your body to get rid of the bad fat cells.  Bad fat actually attaches itself to the fat in coconut oil and leaves your body.  There is a great article on newfamilyliving.com on coconut oil that I highly recommend!

I strongly encourage you to make these heavenly little treats! 

Thanks everyone for reading!