Zucchini tots

I'm always looking for healthier versions of favorites and while these are not quite like tater tots because I didn't fry them, they are close enough for me! If you want them crispier I would recommend putting them in the air fryer after the first 15 minutes. These do freeze very well. Once cooked and cooled just place them on a cookie sheet until frozen an then put them in a bag. I use a vacuum sealer so they last a really long time.

Zucchini "Tots"

1 cup packed grated zucchini

1 large egg

1/4 medium onion, minced

1/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1/3 cup almond flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 tsp italian seasoning

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Wring out water from zucchini and discard water.

Mix all ingredients by hand until combined.

Use 1 TBSP scoop to make cylinder or just put mound onto baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 min. Flip over and cook another 5-10 minutes.

Chocolate Bread

I say it all the time...my child is a genious and this time he came up with the BEST idea! My boss requested peanut butter banana stuffed french toast and I was trying to figure out how to make it a little different because that is what I do. I had been talking to little man about it and he said, "mom, you need chocolate bread." Why didn't I think of that?! I looked at several recipes and finally found one that I thought would work. This chocolate bread slices great and is very versatile! It isn't overly chocolate-y so is great by itself or even with peanut butter and jelly and because it is lower in carbs than normal bread you don't even have to feel so guilty about it!! I would even let me little man take it to school 😁 If it lasts until the morning I might even try it as French toast!
Recipe with minor modifications from https://sweetandsavorymeals.com/keto-chocolate-bread-recipe/

Lower Carbed Chocolate Bread
6 large eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 C coconut flour

1/4 cup almond flour

1/4 cup whey protein powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Whisk sugar and eggs until light and fluffy, about 1 min.

Add butter to egg mixture.

Combine dry ingredient with wet ingredients.

Pour into 9x6 in loaf pan lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 degrees F for 35-40 min.

Allow bread to cool completely before slicing.

A few notes about modifications:
-To make it even lower carbed you can use your favorite sugar substitute in place of regular sugar. Make sure you pay attention to ratios - some sugar alternative, such as allulose (which is my favorite) are not as sweet as sugar so you might have to use more or a combination of two to get your desired sweetness.
-I used unflavored whey protein but you can certainly use any flavor you want or omit it all together and use more almond flour.

Hi everyone!! My how time flies!!! Life was extra busy for a while but now I am back to a point where I can start up my blog again, hooray!! I'm so ready for some kitchen experiments!!!

I am working to update with my recent recipes but I promise they will be up soon! Feel free to let me know if you are dying to have me try a specific recipe!!

Mango Coconut teething cookies

So Little Man is teething, again! I feel like every few weeks he just starts chewing on everything.  I would rather him chew on something relatively healthy and I found this recipe online so I decided to try it out.  He loves them!  I made the first batch soft because I didn't roll them out thin enough.  You might need to add more or less cereal depending on how wet your puree is.

Mango Coconut Teething Cookies

2 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup mango puree
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups baby cereal (I used multi grain)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pie

I was in need of treats because we were having visitors and didn't want to dirty every dish in my kitchen so I only made the peanut butter portion of my Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie, stirred in some chocolate chips and put it in a chocolate graham cracker crust.  It was a hit!  Very rich but oh so good!!

Monkey Bread

For some reason I just wanted to make some cinnamon rolls and of course my husband wasn't opposed, but he told me he could really go for monkey bread.  I love a challenge so I started combing web posts for monkey bread.  I was surprised that I had to add "from scratch" to my search! Most recipes you find online start with pre-made plain biscuit dough, which just doesn't cut it! Monkey bread needs a slightly sweet dough base for me.  I found 2 different recipes and just picked the easier one (http://www.food.com/recipe/cinnamon-pull-apart-bread-from-scratch-476343).  I really didn't want to wait overnight for my sweet treat! I changed a few things and it turned out great!!! I know some people put a glaze on top or dip in butter before eating but I promise this does not need anything! Here is what I came up with:

Monkey Bread
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/3 cups warm water (110 degrees F)
1 teaspoon sugar or honey
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 cups flour
1-2 Tablespoons milk

1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons water

Mix yeast, water, and 1 tsp sugar together and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Combine melted butter, salt, 2 Tbsp sugar and flour using a dough hook.  Add milk as needed to form a cohesive dough ball and then mix 5 minutes on low.

Leave dough in bowl and place in a warm area, covered with a towel, for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.

1. Once dough is risen, punch down. Make small balls of dough about 2-3cm in diameter. Coat in sugar-cinnamon mixture, placing in a bundt pan, and repeat til all your dough is gone. Pour any remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture over dough balls.
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Place 1/2 cup butter, brown sugar and water in a microwave safe bowl and heat until butter is melted.  Stir until mixture is smooth. Pour heated mixture over dough balls, bake for 25-30 min. 
4. Let it cool for 10 minutes and then tip onto a plate and wait 3-5 more minutes so all the gooiness and run down onto the plate and you don't lose any in the pan. Remove pan and enjoy! 

Rice pudding for the Little Man

Yesterday we made a double batch of rice for the week and it made me think that rice pudding would be great for my little man.  There are so  many different varieties it was hard to choose but I went with raisin and cinnamon flavored.  My LM can't have regular milk yet so I chose to use yogurt instead. I went with greek yogurt because that is what I have in my fridge but I am sure it would work with regular yogurt as long as it is plain.  There is enough natural sugar in this dish without adding more! The good news is that the yogurt gives it a little protein and the fruit is actually full of potassium :) My LM does not like the texture of rice normally but this is really creamy so it is not necessary.


Cinnamon Raisin Rice Pudding
1/3 cup raisins
2 dates*
1 cup water
1/2 cup day old cooked rice
1/3 cup greek yogurt
A few sprinkles of nutmeg and cinnamon

Put raisins, dates and water in a small pot. Cook for 5-10 minutes on medium high heat to soften. Add the rice. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for another 10 minutes or until liquid is almost all the way absorbed. Add the yogurt and spices. Mix until creamy then remove from heat.  Puree if desired.


*If you are going to puree the pudding then you can leave them whole.  If you are not going to puree then it is best to chop prior to cooking.