3 Ingredient Frozen Skinny Chocolate Pies

Wait. What?  Frozen Skinny Chocolate Pies? And only 3 ingredients?  That's right. It's true. And they are fabulous!  Just a little bit of chocolately goodness and it's frozen so just perfect for these warm Summer days. Gluten free, almost fat free too.

I have no idea where this recipe started but I can tell you I found it on the new social media channel called Connect, on the Weight Watchers Canada app.  They are calling it a rather crass name that I won't repeat... totally unappealing... so I have changed the name but not the ingredients or the goodness!

So what is in these little goodies, you are wondering? What makes them skinny?  Well, they are made from coco powder, and de-fatted peanut flour and a banana.  I happened to use Protein Plus peanut flour the first time I made them, and have used PB2 since then, and I am sure they would be just as good with chocolate PB2 as well... and I hear there is a new de-fatted peanut flour around now too, called PB & Me. Haven't seen it yet, but when I do, I will be trying it for sure.  I really think these de-fatted peanut flours are a Weight Watchers best friend!

The whole recipe is only 1 Smart Point on the Weight Watchers program.

So, let's get to it, shall we?

3 Ingredient Frozen Skinny Chocolate Pies
Makes 6 pies

Ingredients:

• 1 medium banana
• 1 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 Tbs de-fatted peanut flour of choice

Instructions:

1. Mash the banana in a medium bowl.
2. Add the cocoan and peanut flour.
3. Blend well.
4. Spoon mixture into 6 silicone muffin cups.
5. Freeze at least 2 hours. 
6. Eat frozen.

Per serving of 6.

Weight Watchers Smart Points = 1*

N.I. per individual pie with Protein Plus peanut flour:

Calories 30

Fat 1g

Saturated Fat 0g

Carbohydrates 6g

Fibre 1g

Sugar 3g

Protein 2g

N.I. per individual pie with PB2 peanut flour:

Calories 28

Fat 0g

Saturated Fat 0g

Carbohydrates 6g

Fibre 1g

Sugar 3g

Protein 1g

*On the Smart Points program, bananas are zero points, and 1 Tbs of cocoa powder has zero points, so the only thing to count is 1 SP for the de-fatted peanut flour.

Mash the banana and then add the other ingredients.

Mix till well-combined. Batter will be lumpy.

Place in silicone muffin cups.

Enjoy your frozen treat!

Printable Recipe

What's your favorite quick frozen treat to make in the Summer?

If you like this recipe, won't you consider PINning it please?

PB2 and Banana Smoothie Bowl

In keeping with my theme of having cold breakfasts on these hot Summer mornings, I want to share another fun new breakfast dish with you... or rather another breakfast 'bowl.  I call it PB2 and Banana Smoothie Bowl.

Is there anyone out there who has not enjoyed the pleasure of eating what has become commonly known as banana soft-serve or nice-cream?  You just take a frozen banana and a bit of almond or coconut milk and blend them together till creamy... lovely.  I like to  add flavorings to mine so this breakfast was just an extension of that idea.  I added some PB2, some yogurt and some vanilla protein powder, to turn a dessert snack into a hearty cold breakfast, just right for a hot Summer morning.

I always have a few frozen bananas, peeled and cut into chunks, in a sealed container in my freezer, just waiting to toss into the food processor for quick snacks and desserts... a great way to use over-ripe bananas.

PB2 and Banana Smoothie Bowl

Makes 1 serving

• 1 small banana, peeled, cut into chunks, and frozen
• 2 Tbs PB2
• 2 Tbs unsweetened almond milk
• 3/8 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder

1. Place banana chunks in food processor or blender along with the almond milk.
2. Process till smooth and creamy.  Stop appliance and push ingredients down occasionally if necessary.
3. Add the other ingredients and blend well.
4. Remove to bowl and serve immediately.

Per serving.

Weight Watchers P+ = 6.

Calories 255; Protein 23g; Carbohydrate 38g; Fat 3g; Fibre 7g.

Too thick to drink, it needs a spoon!

Printable Recipe

Are you a smoothie-for-breakfast fan?  Ever eat yours out of a bowl?

My White Smoothie

I didn’t run very much during the month of March.  But I have a very good reason excuse. I had a one-month membership to GoodLife Fitness that I won in a giveaway and wanted to make the most of it so I attended some group exercise classes 3 times a week… Body Pump on Tuesdays, Flow Yoga on Wednesdays, and Body Flow on Fridays.  I did strength training on Sundays and Thursdays with The Captain at home, and we also did a lot of walking.  Before every group class I ran on a treadmill at the gym for anywhere from 10 to 25 minutes, including some sessions of sprint intervals… so there was that!  But overall, running took a back seat… and so when we did finally get out for a 5 km run earlier this week, and again today before our 3.5 km run (after our strength workout) I wanted to make sure we were well prepared with some nutritious fuel.

I like to drink a high protein smoothie before I head out for a run.  I find I don’t need to wait as long after drinking a smoothie before heading out, as I do if I eat something solid.  If I drink a smoothie I only need to wait about 20 mintues to half an hour before I start running. If I eat something solid I need to wait a full hour.  If I don’t I tend to get sick.

This simple combination that I call My White Smoothie is nutritious and delicious. Those are my two main criteria for a pre-run drink. 

My White Smoothie
Makes 1 serving

• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1/2 ripe banana
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 scoop Fermented L-Glutamine

1. Mix everything together with your blender and enjoy.

Per serving.
Weight Watchers P+ = 5.
Calories 204; Protein 26g; Carbohydrate 18g; Fat 4g; Fibre 2g.

Printable Recipe

This drink is a good way for me to get my Fermented L-Glutamine in.  This supplement is flavor-neutral so there is neither added taste nor added color.  I also use a 100% ISO Whey Protein Powder – both of these products are from North Coast Naturals.  You can certainly make it with any vanilla protein powder you like… and  just leave out the L-Glutamine if you don’t use it.



What is your favorite pre-workout fuel?


Are you a high protein smoothie fan?

Hemp Protein and Banana Pancakes

These pancakes were born of combining my love for pancakes with my love for hemp protein powder. I particularly like the one from North Coast Naturals. It mixes readily with other ingredients and is flavor-neutral so never overpowers the taste of the other ingredients.

I bet you could substitute cooked pumpkin or other squash for the banana in this recipe quite easily, if you like.

You will want to have your patience cap on when you make these pancakes.  They take a wee bit longer to cook than a pancake made from a flour batter does.  Just a wee bit, but still, when you are hungry… noticeable.

Hemp Protein and Banana Pancakes
Makes 1 serving of 2 pancakes

• 1/2 ripe banana, mashed
• 3 Tbs egg white
• 1 Tbs almond milk
• 2 Tbs hemp protein powder.
• dash of cinnamon

1. Mash half of a ripe banana in a medium bowl.
2. Add the egg whites and beat with a fork to combine with the mashed banana.
3. Add the almond milk, hemp protein powder and the cinnamon and stir to combine.
4. Set a non-stick pan over MEDIUM heat on the stove and when it has warmed up, spoon half of the batter into the pan. Allow to cook until edges are set and bubbles appear throughout, about 4 or 5 minutes.
5. Flip over and cook the second side for about 3 minutes.
6. Remove to plate and cover to keep warm while cooking the second pancake in the same manner.
7. Serve with your favorite toppings.

Per serving, without toppings.
Weight Watchers P+ = 4.
Calories 190; Protein 20g; Carbohydrate 23g; Fat 3g; Fibre 9g.

Printable Recipe

Don't forget about the North Coast Naturals giveaway that is open to Canadian residents until April 3rd, 2014.  You can find the details here on this blog post.  Good Luck to you!

Gluten Free Banana and Raisin Drop Cookies

I don’t seem to do much baking these days and I really wanted to make something for The Captain this weekend.  He has been so supportive of all the ‘extras’ I have taken on lately… so I came up with these cookies as a treat for him.  These Gluten Free Banana and Raisin  Drop Cookies are not only gluten free, but also grain free, and egg free. My goodness, that sounds so boring… but I can tell you they are very taste-full and have a lovely soft texture.

Actually, I am quite excited about how good they really are…. I ate 3 of them myself! And he really likes them too, thank Goodness.

The Captain loved the raisin drop cookies his Mother made when he was a child so I thought I would try to make something similar that he would really like, but in a gluten free, grain free version.  He doesn’t appear to be suffering from any of the ill effects of gluten sensitivity that some members of his family do, but I do make a point of finding gluten free alternatives for him whenever I can. 

The banana subs nicely for lots of fat and sugar that a regular cookie would have, and also for the egg too.  I made 10 cookies out of this batter… you could make more and rework the N.I. accordingly.  And, you would need to bake them for a shorter amount of time, too.

I used North Coast Naturals Organic Soya Protein in this batter. I like that it is both flavor and color neutral when mixed with other ingredients.  I think you could likely use any soy protein, but not sure if the texture would be as good with a whey or a veggie protein, in this recipe. 

Gluten Free Banana and Raisin Drop Cookies
Makes 10 cookies

• 3 Tbs brown sugar
• 3 Tbs soft butter
• 1 ripe medium banana, peeled
• 2 Tbs soy protein powder 
• 2 Tbs coconut flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 Tbs raisins

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Place butter and sugar in a large bowl. Beat with mixer until well combined.
3. Break banana into chunks and add to the bowl. Beat into butter and sugar mixture.
4. Stir in vanilla extract.
5. Add protein powder, coconut flour, baking soda, and cinnamon.  Beat again until batter is smooth.
6. Add raisins and stir in to batter till evenly distributed throughout.
7. Drop by spoonfuls onto parchment paper lined baking sheet.
8. Bake for 10 – 11  minutes.
9. Remove from baking sheet an allow to cool on racks.  Cookies will be very soft until they cool.

Per cookie.
Weight Watchers P+ = 2.
Calories 82; Protein 1g; Carbohydrate 11g; Fat 4g; Fibre 1g.

Spoon the batter onto parchment paper, into mounds about 2 or 3 inches apart.

They will be quite soft when they come out of the oven.

Be sure to let cool about 15 minutes so that they firm up nicely… if you can wait that long!

Printable Recipe

Chicken in Banana Curry Sauce... Sweet and Savory

You have simply GOT to try this recipe. And if you don’t eat meat, use a bit of water in place of the chicken broth, and serve the sauce over tofu or quinoa, barley, or cauliflower rice. This Banana Curry Sauce is just too good to pass up.  It is slightly sweet, very creamy, and has just a hint of curry… so if you think you aren’t a curry fan, this is the one for you!

It comes together quickly and without a lot of fuss.  Basically, you put the sauce ingredients into a blender to puree the banana… you dredge the chicken with a bit of cornstarch and then brown it...  you put the chicken in a baking dish, cover it with the sauce and pop it into the oven for a while.

Make any changes you need to.  Use coconut oil instead of the olive oil… I think it would be even better, actually.  And if you like, use 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of 2 large breasts.

This version is gluten-free, because I used cornstarch instead of flour to dredge the chicken pieces.  If you eat Paleo, you could use arrowroot powder, or even skip this step and just brown the chicken pieces. 
And serve with veggies of your choice.  So many variations to support your own food choices... but the outcome will be fabulous!

And it SMELLS so good while it is cooking, too.

Ta da!  

Awesome Dinner. Company Worthy. Happy Family.  

Try it!

Chicken in Banana Curry Sauce
Makes 4 servings

• 1 medium ripe banana, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 Tbs medium curry powder
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1 Tbs lemon or lime juice
• 1/2 Tbs brown sugar
• 1/2 can coconut milk (200 ml)
• 3/8 cup chicken stock
• 2 large chicken breasts, about 18 oz in total
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/8 cup cornstarch
• cilantro for garnish (optional but very tasty)
• salt and pepper to season

1. Combine and puree the first 7 ingredients.  Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
3. Cut the chicken breasts in half so that you have 4 equal-sized pieced.
4. Place the chicken in a bowl and sprinkle lightly with cornstarch. Toss to coat the chicken pieces.
5. Heat the oil in  a skillet over MEDIUM-HIGH.
6. Place the chicken pieces into the skillet and brown both sides, then transfer them to a 9 X 13 baking dish that has been coated with non-stick spray for easy cleanup.
7. Pour the banana mixture over the chicken pieces.
8. Cover the baking dish with foil and set into the oven.
9. Bake 45 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
10. Remove chicken to serving plates. Ladle sauce over the top and garnish with cilantro.
11. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Per serving.
Weight Watchers P+ = 7.
Calories 291; Protein 29g; Carbohydrate 13g; Fat 13g; Fibre 1g.

I enjoyed mine over mashed sweet potato.

The next night we heated the leftovers in the mike and they were just as good.

Printable Recipe

What do you think?  Will you try it?

A Variety of Tasty Egg White Bites

I have been making versions of these delicious little ‘bites’ ever since Gabby posted her recipe for 2-ingredient Sweet Potato Bites when I was doing my first Whole 30 Paleo Challenge in January.

I am so thankful to her for introducing me to these wonderful little morsels!

I didn’t have any sweet potatoes in the pantry when I first read the recipe, so I opened a can of pumpkin and used that instead.  I loved them immediately… and I really enjoyed them for a quick snack with a dab of almond butter on top!

I know my Weight Watchers buddies are going to want some details...

I didn’t have a  mini muffin tin at the time so I just used my regular sized silicone muffin cups.
I made 9 regular muffin-size 'bites' instead of the 18 minis that Gabby made and they came out to only 12 calories each.

Then I made them with a whole mashed banana and enjoyed them just as much.  I think the banana makes them a bit sweeter, too.  Again, 9 regular muffin-size 'bites' and these were 19 calories each.

Since then I have made them with sweet potatoes but I changed things a bit.  I used only 2/3 of the ingredients but made 9 again, and they were 24 calories each.

But then I finally bought a mini muffin tin!

And Saturday morning I was making a batch of Bacon and Egg Muffins, so I decided to do a batch of ‘bites’, too…. I had about 1/4 cup of mashed sweet potato in the fridge so I mixed 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce with it and made up my ‘bites’…. wonderful!

So it worked out to only using half the prescribed amount of the ingredients but I made 12 mini muffins out of it and they are 9 calories each.  You can see the size difference between the mini muffin tin and the regular size muffin cups that I used for the Bacon and Egg Muffins.

So now mine truly are just little ‘bites’.

They do make wonderful little snacks… a perfect mix of protein and carbs.  Of course they need to be stored in the fridge, but are very portable and handy…. and it is so fun to see what combos you can come up with.

Check out the original recipe at Gabby’s Gluten Free and then get cooking!

What other combinations do you think would work?… kabocha squash perhaps, and maybe some pureed strawberries.

Shamrock Soft Serve

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day

 

This is the only day of the year where the world turns green and everyone claims some ties to being Irish…. well, I have always been proud of  my Irish heritage.  My paternal grandfather was an Orangeman and we have always celebrated our Celtish roots.

 

But no Shamrock Shake or even dark red beer for me this year… so I decided to celebrate with a Shamrock Soft Serve instead.

 

It was so easy....  I just put a handful (about 1 cup) of fresh spinach into the bowl of my food processor with a splash (about 2 Tbs) of unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze and set it to whizz until the spinach was cut up into small bits… then I tossed in a cu-tup frozen banana and pureed the works for a couple of minutes.
 
It is delicious!  Sweet from the banana but no banana flavor at all… or spinach either.
 
Weight Watchers P+ = 3.
Calories 120; Protein 2g; Carbohydrate 29g; Fat 1g; Fibre 4g.

Just look at that awesome color!

 

How are you celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day?

Tired of Eggs? Try This Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl Scramble

I have been eating eggs for breakfast every day since I started this Whole30 Paleo Challenge on January 1st. EVERY DAY! Eggs have lots of protein and a bit of fat, and keep me satisfied till lunchtime no matter how busy my morning happens to be, or how hard I might workout.  For me, these days, eggs are synonomous with breakfast.

But I just couldn't face scrambled eggs or baked eggs, or even a veggie omelet. I wanted the benefit of eating eggs but I didn't want to taste eggs... what to do?

I thought something sweetened with banana might be good, and then I remembered that I had some frozen berries that I should start using up... so I thought Id make a banana omelet with some berries on the top.... but when I opened the refrigerator, I saw some leftover cooked sweet potato and decided to use that too and make up a sweet potato and banana scramble.

When it was all done, it reminded me of a hot cereal so I put it into a bowl, and ate it with a spoon!  If  I only wanted one serving, I would halve these ingredients. I doubt that reheated leftovers would taste very good... and reheating egg dishes in the mike makes them tough, or so I have heard.

I put some almond butter and berries on mine; The Captain chose chunky peanut butter and I gave him berries as well.  If you are a yogurt fan, it would probably be good with this dish as well.



Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl Scramble
Makes 2 servings

• 1 banana
• 1/2 cooked sweet potato
• 2 eggs
• dash of cinnamon
• dash of vanilla extract

1. Roughly mash the banana and sweet potato together in a medium bowl.
2. Add the eggs, cinnamon and vanilla and mix well.
3. Pour the mixture into a hot skillet that has been coated with non-stick spray, over MEDIUM heat.
4. Allow to cook for several minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Divide between 2 bowls and put on toppings of your choice before serving.

Per serving, without toppings.
Weight Watchers P+ = 5.
Calories 179; Protein 8g; Carbohydrate 26g; Fat 5g; Fibre 3g.

Pour the mixture into a prepared pan.

 

 

And stir occasionally.

 

 

You will notice a color change and a texture change as the eggs cook.

 

 

It will be fairly dry when it's ready... may take 6 or 7 minutes.

 

 

In my bowl, topped with almond butter and berries.

 

 

The Captain likes to mix everything together... but you can see that it resembles cooked cereal.

 

Printable Recipe

 

Do you think this is something you might like? 

 

Do you know any other ways to use eggs and not have them TASTE like eggs?



Banana Protein Cake

We have found a wonderful new breakfast!  A Banana Protein Cake... created by She Rocks Fitness,  a blog I recently discovered and am now following.  Please stop over and read the post about how this dish came to be!

I altered the ingredient list only slightly and then doubled the amounts to make us one cake each.  It was an enormous serving!  I topped our cakes with a mixture of chunky natural peanut butter and fat free plain yogurt.  And, although delicious, it was actually too much and even after a two-hour walk, we were not ready for lunch till well into the afternoon!

The texture of these cakes is wonderful!  Chewy, yet light. 



We both wanted to try this again the next morning because we liked it so much!  But I made a single cake and cut it in half for us to share.  Then I topped it with fat free plain yogurt, a few banana slices and some blackberries... all sprinkled with cinnamon. 



This was definitely a better way to go... Still very filling and delicious, but not too much food all at once..

I am sure you could use your own favorite protein powder and  milk in this recipe and it would work out just fine. 

The original has cocoa powder added to it, too, so the next time I made it, I used chocolate protein powder and left out the cinamon... wonderful!

With yogurt and heated fresh blackberries.



I bet this would make a great little dessert or afternoon snack.  And of course, if your protein powder is gluten-free, the final result will be, as well.  I know that those of you who are Weight Watchers will love this cake!

I calculated the N.I. with the ingredients I used, and will share them for the whole cake as well as half of it.

Banana Protein Cake
Makes 1 cake

• 1 mashed banana
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 egg
• dash of cinnamon
• 2 Tbs vanilla unsweetened Almond Breeze
• 1 Tbs chia seeds
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

1. Beat all ingredients together and allow to sit for a few minutes till chia seeds begin to swell.
2. Pour batter into a microwave safe dish which has been lightly coated with a non-stick spray.
3. Cook on HIGH for 3 minutes, checking after the 2nd minute that the batter is not rising too high and running over the edge of the baking dish.
4. Remove from mike and let rest 4 or 5 minutes.
5. Remove cake to serving dish and top as you like.

Per serving of whole cake, without toppings.
Weight Watchers P+ = 11.
Calories 353; Protein 37g; Carbohydrate 36g; Fat 16g; Fibre 9g.

Per serving of 1/2 of the cake, without toppings.
Weight Watchers P+ = 5.
Calories 177; Protein 18g; Carbohydrate 18g; Fat 8g; Fibre 4g.

Let it rest after cooking, for a few minutes.

Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!



Printable Recipe

Gluten-Free Almond Flour Banana Loaf

I have been dipping my toes into the world of gluten-free and wheat-free and trying some recipes using almond flour, or almond meal.  This gluten-free almond flour banana loaf is my first attenmpt at altering a given recipe, and it is baking in the oven, smelling wonderful as I type this post.

I have been experimenting with eliminating wheat from my diet this past week.... after reading a book called WHEAT BELLY, written by a cardiologist named William Davis, that really spoke to me.  I won't go into all the details but there was enough of  'me' in that book to give up wheat, at least on a trial basis.

I have been looking at wheat-free and gluten-free recipes on the internet and today went searching for a banana bread recipe.  I found some ripe bananas on sale this morning at a local market for 39 cents a pound and couldn't resist buying a few.

The banana bread recipe I found is on a blog called Comfy Belly.  I read through the ingredients, and found that I had most of them in my cupboard, or good substitutions.  And, I read all the reviews, too.  Do you do that when you are thinking of trying a new or unusual recipe?  I always like to see what other people have to say about it... which is why it is so nice for you to comment on my recipes if you have tried them.

Anyway, I didn't want the sugar in the syrup it called for, and I wanted a bit less fat... so I am going to give you the recipe as I made it up, but do check out Comfy Belly.  There are lots of great ideas there and it is nicely organized and presented, too.

Gluten-Free Almond-Flour Banana Loaf

• 2 Tbs sugar free syrup
• 2 Tbs coconut oil, melted
• 2 eggs
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 2-1/2 cups almond flour
• dash of salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 310° F.
2. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and coat with non-stick spray.
3. Peel the bananas and mash them in a large bowl.
4. Add the eggs to the bananas and beat with a spoon till frothy.
5. Add the syrup and oil to the banana mixture and stir till combined.
6. Mix the almond flour, salt, and baking soda together in another large bowl. Set aside a few of the chocolate chips for topping and then stir the remainder into the dry ingredients.
7. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread it evenly.
9. Then sprinkle the reserved chocolated chips over the top.
10. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
11. Let cool in pan for a bout 20 minutes, then turn out and let cool completely before slicing.

The whole recipe has an intimidating N.I. when viewed with the eye of a Weight Watcher:
2181 Calories; Protein 75g; Carbohydrate 113g; Fat 179g; Fibre 35g.  That is a whopping 62 P+!

But, taking a deep breath, I realize that the number of P+ per serving is going to depend upon how many slices are cut.

Here are a couple examples to guide you.

Each of 16 slices:
136 Calories; Protein 5g; Carbohydrate 7g; Fat 11g; Fibre 2g.
WW P+ = 4.

Each of 12 slices:
182 Calories; Protein 6g; Carbohydrate 9g; Fat 15g; Fibre 3g.
WW P+ = 5.

So it is up to me and to you as to how many P+ we need to budget for this treat.

After taking the loaf out of the oven and letting it rest in its pan for the full 20 minutes... I had to go for a little walk... I lifted the edges of the parchment paper and it came right out of the pan.  What a good idea that is...  and after cutting it in half and then those in half again, I realized that 1/16th would be a generous treat. 

Naturally I shared with The Captain and we both ended up eating 2 of them each while they were still warm.  Lovely!  And no sugary 'let's eat the whole thing' cravings ensued.  Hurray!

The rest went into the freezer for another day... but you can bet I will be making this again and doing some more tinkering with the recipe and ingredients to add berries and perhaps some nuts.

Mash bananas in a large bowl.

Add eggs and beat till frothy, then add the rest of the wet inredients and mix well.

Combine the dry ingredients, setting aside a few chocolate chips for the top.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.

Place batter into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips over the top.

Bake for 45 minutes... the kitchen smelled wonderful!

Let the loaf rest for 20 minutes in the pan, then remove to cooling rack and allow to cool a bit longer to make it easier to slice... if you can wait!

It is soft and crumbly and a bit hard to slice while still warm.

I like the outside edge the best!  I am a big crust fan.  So tasty, but not too sweet.

Printable Recipe

Have you baked with almond flour or almond meal?  Any good tips or ideas to pass along?

Taste of the Tropics Smoothie

I am thoroughly enjoying the Coconut Dream that I found last week... on my oats, and on cold cereal, and now in a luscious smoothie that tastes of warm tropical breezes and swaying palm trees... just the thing for a cool winter day!  It has a lovely, light coconut flavor and just enough fat to feel deliciously creamy in my mouth.

Using the Coconut Dream in a smoothie was suggested to me by Christy, from My Dirt Road Anthem.  I am so glad I decided to try it out.  My first attempt is simple and delicious, with only 2 ingredients, but I know I will be doing more experimenting with this.

I like smoothies anytime of the day when I need a snack... whether it is after a workout or just when I need something nutritious to get me through a couple of hours till mealtime. 

And I normally use my immersion blender.  It is so handy and easy to clean,  and I often drink right out of the blender jar!



Tropical Smoothie
Makes 1 serving

• 1 small banana
• 1/2 cup Coconut Dream, unsweetened original flavor

1. Peel the banana and cut it into chunks.  Place in the bottom of the blender container.
2. Add Coconut Dream to container.
3. Whizz about 30 seconds till frothy and thick.
4. Drink out of the blender container or pour into a glass.

Per serving.
Weight Watchers P+ = 3.
Calories 123; Protein 1g; Carbohydrate 25g; Fat 3g; Fibre 3g.

Drink it right from the blender jar... no one is looking!



Printable Recipe

Here are a couple of other smoothies you might enjoy:

Pretty in Pink Pick-Me-Up

Power-Packed Pumkin Smoothie