Gluten Free Upside Down Apple Pie

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It's fall and I just can't stop. Can't stop, won't stop. Buying scarves. Drinking lattes. Wearing Frye boots with two layers of socks. [And simultaneously rocking a tank top in the 70+ degree weather (I'm looking at you, Chicago).]

What is it about Fall that makes me so excited? Maybe I fell in love in Fall. All I know is that it's here, and I want to bake things, carve things, go places, and eat things. In no particular order.

I had a major sweet tooth on Saturday, and indulged myself with chocolate, ice cream, and homemade apple pie. Sweet tooth or not, I was determined to be sensible about what exactly I was consuming. So, when I realized we had a helluvalot of apples, I decided to make said apple pie as natural and healthy as I could without sacrificing flavor. 

Gluten Free Upside Down Apple Pie

Ingredients:

• 4 Apples (I used Fuji), Washed
• 2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tablespoon Cinnamon 
• 2 tsp Liquid Stevia or 6-8 packets Sugar Substitute (Stevia products are better for you than Splenda! Just sayin...)
• 1/4 cup Coconut Flour or Almond Flour (or Regular Flour if not Gluten-Free)*
  *Note: You can omit the flour entirely if you want and just use granola and/or oats. You will have to add 2 more tbsp of oats and adjust as needed to make sure that the crust is crumbly before baking*
• 2 tbsp Granola (or 3 tbsp Oats) - I used Twofold Quinoa Granola
• 2 tbsp Maple/Agave

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Slice washed apples into thin pieces. Toss in a bowl with lemon juice, cinnamon, and stevia/sugar substitute until the apple pieces are fairly evenly coated. Place in a greased/sprayed cake pan or pie tin, laying the pieces flat in a few layers (it doesn't have to be perfect).
3. Put in the oven, covered in aluminum foil, for 30 minutes.
4. To make the crust mixture, combine coconut flour, granola, and maple/agave in a bowl and mix with a fork. Add flour and agave as needed until you get a crumbly texture.
5. Take apples out of the oven and remove aluminum foil cover. Sprinkle apples with the crust mixture, coating evenly.
6. Turn the oven temperature down to 325 and put the pie in, uncovered, for 30 minutes, or until crust has browned.
7. Serve with a scoop or vanilla bean ice cream!

**Note: Twofold provided me with a few sample products to try. I was super excited to use this quinoa granola, and it was utterly crunchy and delicious, but the law says I gotta tell you that it was fuh-ree for me!**

Basil, Ginger, and Cinnamon Cranberry Jam

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Happy Monday, friends! Or, for those of you who are stumbling upon this recipe on a different day of the week, Happy ______day! I hope you're having a wonderful day and week. 

I had a totally relaxed weekend that consisted almost exclusively of "dating" my fiance. Instead of making plans with other friends and couples (which I have a tendency to fill up our calendar with), we spent the weekend together. And, instead of bumming around in sweats during the entire weekend, we made it a point to go on meaningful dates and explore a bit more of our wonderful city. We kicked off the weekend with our "old favorites," stopping by a local pub for dinner on Friday and going to our neighborhood "Breakfast Club" for breakfast on Saturday. After a relaxing day, we then tried out West Town Tavern (seriously to die for) for dinner on Saturday, and Meli for brunch on Sunday. 

In the middle of all of this relaxing, I have to admit I got sucked into wedding planning. Sometimes, when you've got something exciting on the books, it's hard to not revolve around it. It's like everything I see reminds me of it. Cool candles on our dinner tables at West Town Tavern? Sends my mind to wedding mode.

You may not be planning a wedding (if you are, let me know!), but there's probably something you're obsessing over lately. Just admit it. Your mind is spending too much time running on that wheel.

Sometimes, we just need a welcome distraction. Something we can put our effort into that will have more short term rewards, to remind us that we are creative and inspired and competent in this moment. Something to snag our mind off of the obsessing-over-this-or-that path.

That's where this recipe comes in. It's a fairly quick recipe, so it won't eat up your entire day or leave you feeling guilty for spending too much time on a jar of jam. But, it is homemade, and it will give you a break from your stressful or monotonous day.

Not to mention how darn proud you'll feel as you share with friends or take a bite yourself!

I made this jam to give as part of a Christmas gift for my soon-to-be in-laws. But, it was so delicious, that I made some for my own fridge as well.

Basil, Ginger, and Cinnamon Cranberry Jam
Ingredients:

• 1 bag whole/fresh Cranberries (A 4 cup, 12-oz package. Do not use dried cranberries)
• 1/2 cup Water
• 1/3 cup Sugar
• 2/3 cup Stevia Powder
• 1 tablespoon Basil, finely chopped (fresh or dried)
• 1 tablespoon fresh Ginger, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon Honey

Directions:

1. Rinse the cranberries and place in a medium to large sauce pot with water, sugar, and stevia powder. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. 
2. Once the water reaches a boil, reduce to a simmer and simmer for approximately 10-14 minutes, or until all the cranberries seem to have burst.
3. Stir in basil, ginger, cinnamon, and honey and stir well. On the lowest heat, continue to stir very frequently for an additional 2-4 minutes.
4. Test for sweetness and drizzle additional honey (or add sugar) to increase sweetness level.
5. If you'd like to can your jam so that it will last longer, follow these directions: Be sure that your glass jar and top are all clean (I boiled everything in a separate pot to ensure they were all clean). Then, place jam in a jar, filling almost all the way to the top but leaving about 1/4-1/2 an inch of air. Seal well and place in a pot filled with enough boiling water to cover the top of the jam jar. Boil the jam in the water for about 10 minutes (I did 15 to be safe). Remove and let cool.

Notes:

• If you "can" it properly, it will stay good for a full year before being opened... but once you open it, it is just like any other jar of jam and will need to be refrigerated.
• This is a low sugar recipe. I didn't cut out sugar entirely, but I did replace some of it with stevia powder, so that it's not too high sugar (which is a common culprit when it comes to jams). If this swap isn't your thing, feel free to replace stevia powder with sugar.

White Chocolate Cinnamon Oatmeal

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Creamy white chocolate in your breakfast bowl. Lite brown sugar and cinnamon to boot. That's right, people. Your oatmeal just got fancy.

I'm usually an eggs-for-breakfast kind of girl. Or toast with Peanut Butter. But I also have a need to keep a huge jug of dry oatmeal in my apartment at all times. It's like a Neurotic Oatmeal Hoarding Syndrome... NOHS.

The first step is admitting you have a problem. And Houston, we do.

So I find myself trying to make use of it, like I desperately need to use it, which only means that I'll later desperately need to buy more. I find myself thinking things like... I could make homemade Muesli! Or homemade granola, that's do-able... or some kind of fancy oatmeal.

Fancy oatmeal? Don't hold your breath, I tell myself. Oatmeal is just about the blandest thing on the planet... right?

WRONG, my friends. W-R-O-N-G, wrong.

Because, I don't know if you're aware of this, but adding white chocolate to anything automatically deems it fancy. Cinnamon can come too. And a lil bit of lite brown sugar, why the heck not. 

And Voila! You've got yourself the fanciest, most delicious oatmeal treat... ever. Good for breakfast if you want to stay full. Good for curing your ever evil sweet tooth. Good for bathing in when you're feeling sad... wait, don't do that. I haven't tested it yet.

White Chocolate Cinnamon Oatmeal

Prep Time: 1 minute

Cook Time: 1 minute 15 seconds

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Oatmeal
• 1 cup Water
• 1 tablespoon White Chocolate Chips
• 1 tablespoon Light Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Cinnamon

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.
2. Cover bowl with a paper towel.
3. Microwave for 1 minute, 15 seconds.
4. Dig in!

Barbeque Tofu over Tri-Color Hot Quinoa

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Here comes summer! All the goodness, heat, and spice of BBQ fused with stir-fry-like Tofu and Scallions over a hot bed of sweet and savory tri-color Quinoa. So packed with protein that even Popeye has switched to this dish! Enjoy :)

This is an A+ meal. That means CalorieCount.com thinks that this meal is utterly amazing and fabulous for your body. It's the perfect serving size for lunch or dinner -- at just over 300 calories (based on 4 servings per recipe), this dish will keep you full and satisfied. It will also deliver about 30% of your recommended daily fiber intake, almost 70% of your daily calcium requirement (wow!), and about 20 grams of protein. That means slim body, strong bones, strong muscles. What's not to love?

I guess I should also mention how delicious this dish is. Eat it hot if you can. The dish is already hot (spicy), but when you mix the southern barbeque flavor with hearty quinoa, you get a truly delicious treat that will make you smile. Just have a glass of milk ready if you're going heavy on the cajun spices!

BBQ Tofu over Tri-Color Hot Quinoa

Servings: 4-6
Calories: 318
Prep Time: Overnight (suggested for Tofu) or 30 minutes (but a loss of flavor!)
Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Ingredients: 

• 1 block Firm or Extra Firm tofu (generally about 80grams)
• 2 tablespoons BBQ Sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)
• 1 tablespoon Chia Seeds (optional)
• 1 cup Tri-Color Quinoa, rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups Water
• 1 tablespoon Cumin
• 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons Pickle Juice (left overs from a jar of pickles) OR 1/2 cup Broth (Vegetable or Chicken broth)
• 1/2 tablespoon Cajun or BBQ Seasoning (depending on your flavor/spice preference)
• 4 stalks of Scallions (Green Onions), chopped until about 1/4 inch from the roots

Directions:

1. Press Tofu. Remove Tofu from packaging and wrap in a clean kitchen towel (you may choose to add a layer of paper towel before the kitchen towel). Then, press the tofu by putting large books or something else that is heavy and flat on top of it. Make sure to put this on a cutting board that will catch any excess water. There is not much, but there is some. Pressing tofu overnight causes the holes or pores in the tofu to expand, meaning that the tofu will pick up the most flavor the following day while cooking. If you're in a pinch, you can press the tofu for only an hour or two.
2. Cut and Marinade Tofu. Cut tofu into bite size pieces. Then, in a tupperware container or large bowl, gently toss tofu with 1 tablespoon of BBQ Sauce and a few pinches of Chia Seeds (Chia Seeds optional).
3. Cook Quinoa. Combine Quinoa and water and bring to a boil, then add cumin and cinnamon, cover, and reduce heat to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes, still covered. Before serving, fluff gently with a fork.
4. Cook Tofu. In a wide skillet, over medium-high heat, pour a thin layer of pickle juice/broth (this helps keep the tofu from sticking without using olive oil). Add Tofu and use a spoon or brush to add a light layer of BBQ sauce, then sprinkle 1/2 of the dry Cajun/BBQ seasoning on top. After 5-7 minutes, or when the Tofu begins to golden on the bottom, flip each piece, brush additional BBQ sauce, and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 of dry seasoning on top. Add chopped Scallions into the pan to finish cooking with the tofu. After another 5-7 minutes, remove from heat and place on top of plated Quinoa.
5. Top with any additional BBQ sauce and seasoning you desire!

Cinnamon Almond Banana Chips

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Crunchy round chips that have the sweetness of bananas and almond extract, with just a bit of cinnamon kick. Swap these with chips for a healthy, sweet-tasting snack!

You know what? Sometimes, you just deserve chips. Here's a news bulletin for you, though: chips are bad for you. They're filled with fat, trans fat, carbs, and carcinogens... none of which will keep you healthy (or, quite honestly, happy).

Yet, you deserve to have a little crunch in your life. That's where these delicious banana chips come in!

There's something very special about making your own chips. You always end up with less than you thought you'd yield (meaning that there's less in front of you to chow on). Second, when you make something yourself, you'll cherish every bite - because YOU brought those babies onto this earth (good job!)!

In the end, you're subbing these health-packed banana chips for health-destroying regular ones, you're eating less of them, and yet you're cherishing every bite. Sounds like a win-win-win to me. What could be better?

Cinnamon Almond Banana Chips

Servings: 2
Calories: 57
Bake Time: 60-90min

Ingredients:

• 1 Banana
• 1/2 Lemon, juiced
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Almond Extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 215 degrees.
2. Peel banana and cut into 1/8" slices
3. Combine lemon juice, cinnamon, and almond extract in a small, shallow bowl. Dip each banana slice into the mixture, then set on a greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake for ~60 Minutes. Depending on the consistency of your slices, you may want to check on them periodically (perhaps every 15 minutes), starting at about 45 minutes. For thinner chips, they may be ready around this time. If your slices are thicker, you may need to wait 15-30 minutes longer.

Looking for other healthy recipes? Try these!

• Kale Chips
• Chocolate Mousse Filled Cupcakes
• Chickpea Choco Chip Cookies
• Protein Chocolate Banana Pancakes

Recipe | Peanut Butter Banana Protein Shake

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For those of you who are fitness buffs like me, protein shakes are a must. Even if you're not hitting the gym on a regular basis, protein is still a must-have in your diet. Most studies suggest that the average adult needs between 40 to 55 grams of protein each day. 

The icing on the cake (or on the protein shake, I guess?) is that this recipe makes one mean yet delicious shake. I often crave it. Proof that it is delicious.

Picking your protein? There are many options. Look for a Whey protein. Whey protein is the same protein found in milk and is best for post-workout supplements because it is fast-absorbing and as a result can quickly get to work repairing your muscles.Try to get this in your system within 40 minutes of working out if you're using it as a post-workout shake!

 

Want the full recipe? Read on, my friends! :)