OhYaGood

Whole Food Lover + Recipe Hacker

Sweet Cinnamon Chex Mix

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It’s December 29th! How did that happen?! Every week just came and went with parties, events and of course some good old fashioned sickness to round out our December. Regardless, we have a holiday filled with lots of joy, rest and good food to boot.

One of my Mom’s go-to for parties and gatherings is a big tub of chex mix. She made it this Christmas in fact! It’s the savory kind with worcestershire sauce. It’s so damn good and better than any bagged mix on the market. She also makes a sweet, sticky, coconut kind that is delicious but not as easy to make. Because both of these varieties have butter, I wanted to try a version without. Naturally, I tackled a sweet version first.

Sweet Cinnamon Chex Mix
 
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Recipe type: Snack
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups rice chex
  • 1½ cups corn chex
  • ½ cup pecans
  • ½ cup walnuts
  • ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
  • ¼ cup coconut sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon of cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°
  2. Mix chex and nuts together place on a parchment lined baking sheet
  3. Mix oil, sugar, syrup, cinnamon, cayenne and salt together and pour over the chex and nuts, coating evenly.
  4. Bake for about 7 minutes and stir. Bake another 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
  5. Add more sugar, spices or syrup to taste.

 

Sweet Potato Rounds

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Enjoying appetizers are kind of a joke for anyone not eating cheese or bread. Typically I make a crudité platter with some hummus when I need something quick. But if I take some time, I can do something delicious like deviled eggs or meatballs which is great, unless vegetarians are present too. So here’s a little something vegan that also takes a little effort but has a tremendous pay off.

This idea came to me after seeing fried sage show up on my instagram feed. I had tried making it last year but I knew I fried those tender little leaves too long so the flavor was more like burnt sage. I had to take another stab. I’ve been wanting to do something with sweet potato rounds too so obviously the two became a perfect pair. If you didn’t have to be dairy-free, you could certainly use Neufchâtel or even mascarpone as a substitute for the cashew cream.

Sweet Potato Rounds
 
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Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Serves: 24
Ingredients
  • 1-2 sweet potatoes or enough to make roughly 24, ¼" slices
  • ½ cup cashews
  • 1 cup water, ¼ reserved
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 24-30 sage leaves
  • ¼ cup oil for frying (I used avocado) and more for brushing rounds
  • sea salt
  • cracked peppercorn
Instructions
  1. To make the cashew cream from scratch, mix the cashews with ¾ cup room temperature or cool water and let soak for at least 2 hours or overnight
  2. After the cashews are softened, drain the water and rinse in a colander
  3. Add the cashews and ¼ cup water to a high speed blender or food processor and pulse until they start to cream
  4. Scrap sides as needed, this can take 3-5 minutes to get just right
  5. Preheat oven to 350° F
  6. Place slices of sweet potatoes on a oiled sheet pan
  7. Brush each round withe oil and bake for 15 minutes
  8. While they bake, heat oil at medium-high heat in a saucepan
  9. Fry about 4-5 sage leaves at a time for only 3 seconds
  10. Fish them out with a fork and cool them on a paper towel, top them with a few cracks of sea salt
  11. Assemble the rounds with a dollop of cashew cream and top with the sage
  12. Garnish with some fresh cracked peppercorn

 

 

BLT Pizza

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This summer hasn’t left much time for kitchen exploration but it has my the motivation to try new products. Mostly to make the cooking process a little easier. I really wanted to make my own cauliflower crust for pizza but I bought a freezer full of the trader joes version instead. I’m only half kidding.

After a successful attempt at making taco pizza with the cauliflower crust, I decided to try another favorite from the infamous Happy Joes I frequented as a kid, BLT pizza. It turned out amazing!

BLT Pizza
 
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Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2-3
Ingredients
  • 1 cauliflower crust or pre-made crust of your choice
  • 2 tablespoons mayo (whole30 approved)
  • 3 slices of bacon
  • 1 cup thinly sliced romaine or iceberg lettuce
  • ¾ cup sliced cherry tomatoes
  • 3 slices of red onion
Instructions
  1. Bake crust according to package directions
  2. Render bacon in the oven for 10 minutes at 375°
  3. Spread mayo onto cooked crust
  4. Top with remaining ingredients

 

Sesame Carrot Noodles

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If you shop at Costco, you are no stranger to the ginormous 10lb bag of carrots that are available in their produce section. So often I would reach for them then think “there’s NO way we could get thru all of these” and put them back. Well, on Monday, I gave into the challenge and to my surprise, we’ve actually eaten a good portion of them. However, it was time for a new variation besides raw sticks. So I came up with this delicious “noodle” dish using my spiralizer. It tastes so much like a Japanese seaweed salad with out the jelly like texture. I’ll be honest, my kids weren’t sold but my husband and I slurped them up.

 

Sesame Carrot Noodles
 
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Recipe type: Side
Cuisine: Asian
Serves: 4-5
Ingredients
  • 7-8 large carrots or 4 cups of spiraled carrot noodles
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1 T sesame oil
  • 1 tsp garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ⅛ tsp pepper
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • ⅛ cup + 1 T light oil like avocado, olive or vegetable, divided
  • ⅛ cup coconut aminos
  • ½ T red onion, finely diced
  • black or white sesame seeds
Instructions
  1. Spiralize the large part (about 1½ in in circumference) of the carrots to make into noodles
  2. Toss the noodles into a large skillet over medium heat with the Tablespoon of oil for about 5 minutes or until carrots are slightly softened
  3. Whisk together remaining ingredients except for onions and seeds for the dressing and pour over noodles
  4. Garnish with red onion and sesame seeds

Celery and Grapefruit Salad

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Celery_Grapefruit_Salad_loHappy 2017! Naturally, my first post of the year is a salad. Even though I’m not a big new years resolution kind of gal, I certainly can appreciate the need to eat better after too many cookies. Seriously, I made my peppermint cookies at least a half dozen times over the course of a month. Could. Not. Stop.

This time of year is tricky when it comes to seasonal produce or lack there of but one thing I seem to always have on hand is celery, my soup staple and dip boat. This salad is chalk full of the refreshing and crunchy vegetable and even includes the greens so don’t pitch ’em. You could easily use some fancy oils like hazelnut or walnut for more complex flavors but the salad is good as is and who wants to go buy an $8 bottle of oil that will likely go rancid before using it all. Practicality wins in my book!

Celery and Grapefruit Salad
 
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Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 3 celery sticks
  • ½ chopped fennel bulb
  • 1 grapefruit, peeled and sliced to your liking
  • 2 T roughly chopped celery leaves
  • 1 scallion, thinly sliced crosswise
  • 3 T hazelnuts or walnuts, roasted and chopped
  • ½ teaspoon minced garlic
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ⅛ cup lemon juice
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Roast hazelnuts or walnut at 350 F until brown (about 5 minutes) cool completely before roughly chopping
  2. Mix together grapefruit, celery, fennel, celery leaves and green onion into a medium sized bowl
  3. Whisk together minced garlic, oil and lemon juice and drizzle into the salad
  4. Toss and garnish with chopped hazelnuts and salt and pepper

 

Watermelon Salad

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watermelon_salad

It’s summer in full swing which means loads of fresh produce with little effort, right?! That’s been my motto anyways. I feel way more like a prep cook just slicing and dicing. I also have a wedding I’m bridesmaiding in a matter of days so all baking and sweet dishes are going to have to wait till after. Let’s just say I’ve been scheming an ice cream dessert for quite a while I hope to attack. Oh and that breakfast cookie I teased everyone with on instagram.

Watermelon has been so incredible these last few weeks and my family has already eaten three whole ones. The girls devour it. I’m an overachiever myself. This salad has made it especially wonderful. It’s a play on an appetizer a friend of mine introduced me to years ago that included buffalo mozzarella. That would also make a great addition to the salad if you can eat cheese. That or feta or ricotta salata.

Watermelon Salad
 
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Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 cup cubed watermelon
  • 1 cup halved tomatoes, cherry or grape
  • ¾ cup diced seedless cucumber
  • small bunch of mint, finely diced
  • small bunch of basil, finely diced
  • (optional) balsamic vinegar
  • (optional) honey
Instructions
  1. Prep first 5 ingredients and mix into a bowl
  2. Whisk balsamic and honey together or use a already prepared glaze to drizzle over the salad

 

Egg Salad with Beets

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EggSaladwithBeets

Growing up, my Dad owned a a chain of sub shops called Pickle Barrel. One of his pride and joy recipes was his egg salad. His secret ingredient was Miracle Whip but I don’t eat the stuff anymore. I’m not even sure what it’s made of but egg salad is still a favorite of mine I just make it with mayo. This one is made with beets for some extra nutritional value and tartness. I ate it on some celery sticks but it tastes just as good on a crusty roll or cracker, according to my husband.

Egg Salad with Beets
 
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Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 5 hard boiled eggs
  • 2 Tablespoons mayo
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • ½ cup roasted beets (I used the jarred trader joes variation)
  • 1 Tablespoon diced red onion
  • salt and pepper
  • (optional) 1 teaspoon fresh dill
  • bread, celery sticks, cucumber, field greens or whatever vehicle you prefer
Instructions
  1. Mix eggs, mayo, dijon, beets, red onion, dill, salt and pepper in a bowl.
  2. Serve with your preferred vehicle

 

BLT Cups

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blt_cupsAppetizers have always been hard for me. My go-to for parties usually consist of veggie and fruit trays, guacomole and the occasional meatball. When you don’t eat bread or cheese …and now beans (sad face), most dips are out of the question as are many vehicles. However, I’ve discovered endive to be very satisfying and have made this amazing Food and Wine recipe numerous times if you like shrimp. It inspired me to try a lettuce cup app since it is easier to find year round and has a lighter flavor. And because the super bowl is this weekend, why not an indulgent appetizer with plenty of bacon.

BLT Cups
 
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Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 6 medium sized leafy green lettuce leaves
  • 4 slices of bacon, cooked and sliced into ½ in strips
  • 1 cup halved grape tomatoes
  • ½ an avocado, diced
  • ½ Tablespoon red onion, finely diced
  • 1 Tablespoons mayo (homemade for whole30 compliant)
  • ½ Tablespoon lemon juice
  • cracked pepper
Instructions
  1. Render bacon to your liking, I bake mine for 10 minutes at 375°F
  2. Mix bacon, tomatoes, avocado, red onion, mayo and lemon juice in a bowl
  3. Scoop about ¼ cup of the mixture into the lettuce leaves
  4. Serve with cracked peppercorn
  5. Contents will keep for two hours

 

Bacon, Apple & Fig Bites

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bacon fig apple bitesSo many appetizers have cheese in them. Spinach artichoke dip, crab dip, cheese and crackers, cheese balls, cheese, cheese, cheese. That’s why I made these. I wanted something a little more exciting and filling than the usual raw veggies and olives for all of us dairy-, gluten-free-ers?

This is a great last minute appetizer and a play on the classic bacon wrapped chestnuts. All you need are these three ingredients and some toothpicks. To make Whole30 compliant, make sure your bacon is sugar-free.

Bacon, Apple & Fig Bites
 
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Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Serves: 24 bites
Ingredients
  • 1 granny smith apple or another tart variety, sliced into small triangles
  • 6 slices of thick bacon
  • 12 dried mission figs, stems removed and cut in half
Instructions
  1. Render the bacon slices on the stove for 10 minutes over medium heat, flipping after 5 minutes
  2. While cooking slice the apple and prepare the dried figs
  3. Once back is cooked to your preference, cool on a plate with a paper towel
  4. Cut each slice into 4 pieces cross-wise
  5. Assemble the bites apple, bacon and fig on top and pierce with a toothpick