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This is a labor of love but it’s SO GOOD!

Winter quinoa salad

Ingredients
* 1 cup quinoa uncooked
* 2-3 cups butternut squash cubed
* kosher salt for sprinkling on squash
* 2 medium onions thinly sliced into rings (approximately 2 cups)
* approximately ⅛ teaspoon salt
* ½ cup dried cranberries or more to taste could also use dried cherries
* 2-3 tablespoons EVOO divided plus extra for roasting squash
* 1-2 tablespoons fresh sage chopped
* ½ cup salted cashews more to taste
* 2 tablespoons lemon juice
* 1- 1 1/2 cups packed baby spinach
* salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Make Quinoa
* Rinse quinoa
* In a medium saucepan, add quinoa and 2 cups of water.
* Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.
Caramelize Onions
* Meanwhile, heat 1-2 tablespoon oil to cover the base of a large skillet over medium heat.
* Add onions, sprinkle with salt and cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally until soft and golden brown, approx 20-25 minutes.

Roasted Butternut Squash (roast while quinoa cooks and onions caramelize)
* Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
* Gently toss cubed squash with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil or neutral oil of choice, place in a single layer on baking sheet and sprinkle with kosher salt.
* Bake 30 minutes, or until tender with crispy edges.
* Set aside.
Make Dressing
* Mix together remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and lemon juice.
Assemble
* Add cranberries to the dressing and let sit for a minute or two.
* Add dressing along with cranberries to cooked quinoa and toss to combine.
* Add onions and sage to the quinoa mixture and toss to combine
* Add squash and spinach to warm quinoa mixture and gently combine and let spinach wilt from warmth of quinoa and squash. Pro Tip: If quinoa and squash not warm enough, you could saute spinach for 1 minute or two to get it a little wilted.
* Add in cashews. Pro Tip: if not eating the entire salad at once, hold out some of the cashews and add in when serving. That way they will stay crunchy and salty.
* Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the extra brown bits from the caramelized onions skillet as desired. Add more lemon juice as desired. Stir well and enjoy!

1 picked-over turkey carcass
* 1 ½ cups leftover stuffing
* 1 onion, peeled and diced
* 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
* 2 celery stalks, chopped
* 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
* 1 teaspoon ground sage
* 2 bay leaves
* 2 ½ quarts chicken broth
* 1 cup water, or as needed (Optional)
* ½ teaspoon garlic salt, or to taste
* ground black pepper, to taste
* 2 cups (uncooked) regular long-grain white rice
* 1 (16 ounce) package frozen green peas

Directions
1. Place turkey carcass in a large, deep pot. Add stuffing, onion, carrots, celery, poultry seasoning, sage, and bay leaves.
2. Pour in chicken broth. Add additional water if needed to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, skimming off any foam, for about 1 hour.
3. Remove carcass and any bones. Pick any meat off carcass and bones. Return meat to the pot and discard bones and skin.
4. Season soup with garlic salt and pepper. Stir in rice and return to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Stir in peas and continue to simmer until rice is tender, about 10 minutes more.
6. Adjust seasonings to taste before serving.
7. Serve hot and enjoy!

Here is a nice little Fall snack to have with your pumpkin coffee and pumpkin creamer lol!

This crumb cake leaves you satisfied and is full of pumpkin flavor!

Enjoy xo Jen

Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients:

• ½ cup almond flour
• ½ cup coconut flour
• ⅓ cup Swerve
• 3 tablespoons ground flax
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 eggs
• ⅓ cup canned pumpkin
• ¼ cup non-dairy milk
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crumb Topping:

• 2 tablespoons melted ghee butter
• ⅓ cup almond flour
• ¼ cup chopped pecans
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch sea salt

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Whisk together the dry ingredients (almond flour through baking powder) in a bowl.
2. In a separate large bowl, whisk the eggs, pumpkin, milk, butter, and vanilla.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir to combine.
4. Add batter to an 8-by-8-inch dish coated with cooking spray.
5. Stir together the crumb topping ingredients.  Sprinkle over the top, and bake for 30-32 minutes on a middle rack until set and the top is golden brown.
6. Let cool before cutting into 9 squares.

This Immune Boosting Chicken Soup is soooooo good and not to mention very good for you!  This soup isn’t just good for winter but great for all year round.

Use in-season ingredients if you want to add more vegetables each time you make this!

xo Coach Jen

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 celery ribs
• sliced1 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into tiny pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-1/2 cup bok choy
• 1-1/2 teaspoon curry
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 1 pound cooked chicken, shredded
• fresh cilantro
• fresh daikon sprouts

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add the onion, carrots, celery and ginger and cook for 6-7 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the garlic, and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the curry powder, chicken stock, and chicken and stir to combine.
4. Continue to cook until the soup reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover with a lid, and let them simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Garnish with daikon sprouts and cilantro.

This recipe is SO SIMPLE…and delicious!!!

1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 cup chopped sweet onion

1 cup organic low sugar barbeque sauce

Put chicken breasts in a slow cooker and top with onion and barbeque sauce.
Cook on High for 4 hours. Shred chicken with 2 forks and continue cooking Low for 4 hours more

AND BOOM! You have shredded BBQ Chicken!

ENJOY! xoxo jen

This one is from my good friend and amazing Chef, Chef Alina!

Click here to visit her website.

Coffee Cake Baked Oatmeal?

Ever since I was a child, I have loved coffee cakes and crumb cakes. My favorite part is (of course) the sugary, crumbly, cinnamon filled, streusel topping. Lately I have been experimenting with protein fortified baked oatmeal because delicious prep ahead breakfast that hold well are hard to come by. All of the baked oatmeal recipes I have come up with so far have been pretty good but this one “takes the cake”.

Happy Accidents

The texture of this baked oatmeal is very cake like and is the result of what I like to call a happy accident. Happy accidents are when you screw up what you were intending to do and end up with a better result by default. Some of my best recipes over the years are happy accidents.

Mise en Place

The day I decided to create this recipe I was in a hurry and was just throwing all of the ingredients in the bowl  as I measured them. This goes against everything I preach as a culinary instructor and chef, and it is something I rarely do. Normally I “mise in place” which means to measure out everything separately before putting the recipe together. Mise en place allows you to make sure you have all of the right ingredients, the right quantities and then lets you quickly put the recipe together in proper order. This ensures success every time and is key in professional baking.

Saved By The Blender

Since I threw everything in the bowl, and did not mix my dry ingredients together first, some of my protein powder clumped. In order to get rid of the clumps I skimmed them all off the top and but them in the blender with about half of the total batter mixture. What happened as a result is a “happy accident”.  By blending half of the batter, I created a thicker mixture because the oats that got blended were able to absorb more of the almond milk. I am certain this is what gave this recipe a more cake like texture than others.

The Best Part

For the topping I really wanted to get as close as possible, in flavor and texture, to a traditional cinnamon streusel. Traditionally streusel is a mixture sugar, flour/ oats/ nuts and butter. I replaced the flour with a combination of quick oats & protein powder and the fat with a mixture of almond butter and hazelnut mct oil. The sugar is replaced with a touch of maple syrup.  I hope you love it as much as I do.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake Baked Oatmeal

Course: Breakfast, brunch, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American, dairy free, gluten free, Meal Prep

Keyword: Baked Oatmeal

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 12

Calories: 173 kcal

Author: Alina Eisenhauer

This baked oatmeal is delicious served warm, cold or room temperature. I like it as is with a cup of coffee but it is also delicious topped with vanilla cashew milk yogurt, Greek yogurt or warm sauteed fruit. Keep in mnd that this is baked oatmeal not cake so the texture is more similar to bread pudding.

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Ingredients

• 90 grams gluten-free quick rolled oats
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 450 grams almond milk vanilla unsweetened
• 60 grams vanilla protein powder *see notes
• 240 grams egg whites
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 90 grams maple syrup

Topping

• 45 grams quick rolled oats
• 30 grams walnuts measure then finely chop
• 30 grams vanilla protein powder
• 2 tbsp MCT oil can sub with any oil you like
• 2 tbsp almond butter
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 and lightly spray or oil a 9×13 pan.

Topping

1. Place the oats, protein powder, cinnamon and chopped walnuts in a medium sized bowl and set aside.

2. In a small microwave proof dish, combine the almond butter, mct oil and maple syrup. Warm for 15-20 seconds or until they loosen and mix together easily.

3. Pour the almond butter mixture over the oat mixture and use a fork to combine into a crumbly mixture, set aside.

   

The Batter

1. In a large bowl mix together the oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt

2. Add the almond milk, egg whites, vanilla and maple syrup. Whisk together until all of the ingredients are well combined.

3. Place half of the batter mixture into a blender, add the protein powder and blend until slightly thickened and well combined. Pour this mixture back into the bowl containing the original mixture and stir to combine well.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared 9×13 pan and bake (on the middle rack) for 15 min or until it is just beginning to set.

5. Carefully and evenly sprinkle the streusel over the top, rotate the pan and bake for an additional 15 – 20 min until it is set and the topping is just starting to brown.

6. Remove from the oven and let cool before slicing.

7. This oatmeal will keep for a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Recipe Notes

This recipe was created with  unsweetened vanilla almond milk but it will work with any nut milk you like or 2% dairy milk.

For the protein powder I used The Dr. & The Chef vanilla whey protein – if you are non dairy you can use The Dr. & The Chef vegan vanilla protein powder or any protein powder you like just remember that it may change the nutrition profile and texture.

For the oats you can use quick oats, which is what I use, old fashioned oats or a mix of the two – if you use old fashioned it will have a slightly denser chewier texture.

Nutrition Facts

Cinnamon Coffee Cake Baked Oatmeal

Amount Per Serving

Calories 173Calories from Fat 54

% Daily Value*

Fat 6g9%

Saturated Fat 2g13%

Sodium 188mg8%

Potassium 340mg10%

Carbohydrates 18g6%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 8g9%

Protein 11g22%

Calcium 178mg18%

Iron 0.8mg4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

The best healthy apple crisp recipe that’s naturally sweetened with maple syrup instead of sugar and topped with a crunchy oat pecan topping. Serve this delicious apple crisp warm with vanilla bean ice cream. The perfect way to use up fall apples!

Ingredients
For the topping:
⅓ cup (38g) whole wheat pastry flour or oat flour
½ cup (48g) old fashioned rolled oats, gluten free if desired
⅓ cup (71g) dark brown sugar
½ cup (56g) raw chopped pecans
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
1/4 cup coconut oil
For the crisp:
5-6 medium Honeycrisp or Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and very thinly sliced
⅓ cup (104g) pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease an 8×8 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
To make the topping: Combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and pecans in a large bowl until well-combined. Add in the pieces of butter and use your hands to squeeze and combine until the mixture becomes crumbly and resembles wet sand. (Alternatively, you can cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, or place all of the topping ingredients in a food processor and pulse until just blended. My favorite method is to use my hands, as I believe you get the best crumbly topping that way.)
Once finished, place topping in the fridge and begin making the apple filling.
To make the filling: Place apples, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg and bourbon (or vanilla) in a large bowl and toss to combine. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes.
Take 1/3 cup of the topping mixture and toss with the apple mixture. Place the apple mixture in prepared pan and sprinkle evenly with topping.
Bake the crisp on a baking sheet (just in case the filling bubbles over!) for 45-55 minutes, or until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbling. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes on wire rack. Serve warm with your favorite vanilla ice cream. Makes 9 servings.

We’ve been having fun with old-school hacks lately!

These Turkey Sloppy Joes were so good and definitely worth trying!

Enjoy xo Jen

Turkey Sloppy Joes

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 small white onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound 94% lean ground turkey
• Salt and pepper
• ½ cup ketchup
• ¼ cup spicy low sugar BBQ sauce
• ½ tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Add olive oil to a medium skillet and place over medium-high heat. Add in the garlic, white onion, and bell pepper; saute for 5 minutes or until the onion is translucent. Transfer ingredients to a small bowl.
2. Next, add ground turkey to the skillet and season with salt and pepper; break up the meat as it cooks.
3. Once the turkey is cooked, add the onion/bell pepper mixture back in. Then add in ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, and mustard. If you like a little heat, add in cayenne pepper.
4. Stir well to combine and bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes longer. If the sauce looks too thick, add in a tablespoon of water.

3 Ingredient Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies

These healthy oatmeal breakfast cookies need just 3 ingredients and 12 minutes to whip up!

Made with peanut butter and oatmeal, it can be made with or without the banana and is the perfect quick and easy breakfast!

Eggless, vegan and gluten-free

Ingredients
* 2 cups gluten free rolled oats Can sub for quinoa flakes or buckwheat flakes
* 3 large overripe bananas, mashed
* 1/2 cup peanut butter can sub for any nut or seed butter
* 1/4 cup chocolate chips of choice Optional

Instructions
* Preheat the oven to 175C/350F. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
* In a large mixing bowl, add all ingredients and mix very well, until fully combined. If using chocolate chips, stir them in with a spatula.
* Lightly wet your hands and form 8 balls with the cookies. Place each ball on the lined mat, and press each ball into a cookie shape. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until slightly golden on the edges. Remove from the oven.
* Allow cooling on the mat for 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition
Serving: 1Cookie | Calories: 103kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 6.5g | Fat: 6g | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1250IU | Vitamin C: 1.7mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 0.4mg

This was sooooooo good!!!!!

Even my husband ate leftovers.  So you know it’s good if that happens!

Definitely add this to your dinner menu this week!

Enjoy xo Jen

Crockpot Veggie Beef Stew 

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 – 8oz filet mignon cut into cubes
• 6 carrots chopped
• 2 zucchini chopped
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 leeks chopped
• 6 potatoes chopped
• 2 celery stalks chopped
• 2 containers of organic beef bone broth

DIRECTIONS:

1. Throw all meat and veggies and broth into the crockpot with 2 cups of water.
2. Add salt and pepper and cook for 6 hours on low!