Vegan vanilla muffin base recipe / vegan chocolate chips muffins

This base can be used with any mix ins. Apples and cinnamon would be great.

1 + 1/4 Cup whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup coconut sugar 
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp chia seeds (mixed with 1/4 cup of water, pureed in a blender or food processor)
2/3 cup water
1 1/3 cup So Delicious Dairy Free Vanilla Coconut Milk
1/4 cup Coconut Oil (warmed to liquify)
3 Tbsp Honey
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips (I use enjoy life)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine dry ingredients (Flour through salt) set aside
3. Make the chia seed mixture and set aside.
4. Add in remaining ingredients leaving out chocolate chips &; chia seed mixture.
5. Mix in reserved chia seed & water mixture.
6. Allow batter to rest for 15 minutes then mix in chocolate chips.
7. Line cupcake pan with silicon liners, or spray with cooking spray and use paper liners
8. Scoop the batter into each of the liners
9. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. You may want to over cook these as they will be a little wet if you only cook them 22 minutes. These are best after being refrigerated over night. Straight out of the pan they can be a little moist. The next morning they are perfect. 

These  muffins will rise but they fall again once they have cooled.  You can fill them about 3/4 of the way full without having them bake over the top of the tin, and then they will settle at about 3/4 of the way full again. 

Broccoli chicken casseorle

This is the cheapest, easiest, most lazy meal ever, and somehow EVERYONE LOVED IT! It's one of those things where I was at the store, threw 6 things in the basket and prayed.

1 Store bought roasted chicken shredded
2 cups uncooked small shell pasta
2 cups mild shredded cheese shredded
1/2 cup frozen broccoli pieces
1 can cream of mushroom chicken
1 can cream of celery chicken

Preheat oven to 450. Boil pasta. While pasta is boiling mix everything else in a bowl reserving 1/2 cup of cheese. Combine pasta in with remaining ingredients and place in an oven safe baking dish. Cover with remaining cheese and bake for 20 minutes. Serve.

Literally that is it. I told you...cheap, easy LAZY. But really good.

Slow Cooked Three Bean Turkey Chili

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 pounds ground turkey or beef
1-15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1-15 ounce can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1-15 ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
3-14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes with jalapenos
1 large onions, chopped
1 green bell pepper, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. In a skillet, cook turkey or beef with onions, garlic and bell pepper. Cook over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain excess fat.
2. Transfer to a slow cooker. Stir in beans, tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.
3. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4 hours. Serve topped with cheddar cheese, onions, sour cream, tortilla chips or your favorite toppings.

NOTE: This is not spicy. Too kick it up add some cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper.

Chicken Tortilla Casserole

I get these emails all the time from Eat Better America. This last one had a dish that looked so good I e-mailed it right to my mom. Tonight I decided to make it, oddly so did my mom. Here is the recipe as it was intended to be made. I'll tell you my variations at the bottom. Brandon really liked this which says a lot for a four year old, he called it "cheese chicken." The husband had seconds too. The recipe is called "Healthified" Chicken Tortilla Casserole.

1 can (10 3/4 oz) 98% fat free 45% less sodium condensed cream of chicken soup 1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chile's 1 container (8 oz) fat-free sour cream ½ cup fat-free (skim) milk 1 ½ teaspoons chili powder ½ teaspoon ground cumin 2 ½ cups shredded cooked chicken breast 8 yellow corn tortillas (6 or 7 inch), torn into bite-size pieces 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped (1 cup) 1 large tomato, chopped (1 cup) 1 ½ cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend (6 oz) 1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In large bowl, mix soup, chilies, sour cream, milk, chili powder and cumin until blended. Stir in chicken, tortillas and bell pepper. Stir in tomato and 1 cup of the cheese. Spoon and spread mixture in baking dish. 2. Cover with foil. Bake 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake uncovered 5 to 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and mixture is bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes.

This recipe is really as easy as it sounds. I didn't have any shredded chicken just laying around and I didn't plan ahead and have it ready so I will share with you my full proof method of cooking chicken fast. In a baking dish add 1 cup chicken broth and 2 cups of water. Place boneless skinless chicken in and bake it at 550 for about 15 minutes. It should be pretty close to done. This is basically poaching and keeps skinless boneless chicken very moist. I kept mine just under done so it wouldn't dry out during the final bake.

Next. I did not use anything light. I live in a family of underfat men, shit Codi just finally made it to 10% on the weight chart and we celebrated that. I might have also used a tad bit of extra cheese.

I omitted the bell peppers because none of my boys like them.

I combined half regular corn tortillas and half hard ones (they are called tostada shells in the store.) My husband really likes crunchy stuff so I put a few of those closer to the top of the casserole to keep them crisp. I used these tostada shells (the yellow corn ones on the top.)

I think beans would be a nice addition to this. Possibly pinto or red, I don't think black beans would be the right flavor. I also think if I wasn't making it for a kid I would mix in a tiny bit of cayenne pepper or a couple splashes of Tapatio.

Finally, yes I know it looks a little weird when you are first mixing it but it taste so good in the end. SO GOOD!

For a printable version of their recipe click here.

Split Pea with Ham Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 pound dried split peas, picked through, rinsed and drained
1 ½ pound ham bone
8 cups cold water
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 potatoes, diced
2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large pot melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots and potatoes cook, stirring until soft, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic cook another minute.
2. Add in the peas, ham, water, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper.
3. Bring to a boil then simmer for 1 ½ hours or until peas are tender, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove the bay leaf and the ham bone. Cut off any remaining meat, chop up and return meat to the soup. Return soup to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Garden style white lasagna (can be made with or with out chicken)

Spinach layer
1/2 cup flour
3.5 cups low fat milk
1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
10 oz chopped frozen spinach (thawed and drained)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Vegetable layer (can add chicken here if you like)
2 Cups chopped brocoli
2 zucini's chopped
2 yellow squash chopped
1 large yellow onion chopped
5 cloves garlic chopped
1/4 cup carrot chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
(2 cups chicken baked and shredded)
Canola oil spray

Cheese layer
3 cups fresh mozzarella shredded

1/4 cup fresh basil ribboned

1 Package whole wheat lasagna noodles cooked

Preheat oven to 375. Bring salted water to a boil for noodles. When it reaches a boil add noodles and stir frequently. Coat large pan with canola oil over medium high heat. Add broccoli, zucchini and squash. Sauté for 4 minutes and add onion, garlic, carrots, salt and pepper. (Add shredded chicken now if desired). Stir mixture often until soft. In large saucepan heat to high and pour in flour. Slowly whisk in milk and bring to a boil. Whisk until thick and turn off heat. Whisk in salt, pepper, nutmeg, Parmesan and spinach.

Coat baking dish with spray. Add 1/3 spinach sauce. Top with single layer of noodles. Add 1/2 of veggie layer (and chicken if desired) Add 1/3 mozzarella cheese. Add second layer of noodles and top with 1/3 of spinach sauce, add second half of vegetable mixture. Add 1/3 of mozzarella cheese and top with noodles. Add remaining third of spinach sauce and top with remaining mozzarella. Cover loosely and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes. Turn oven to broil and cook until cheese bubbles and browns. Allow to cool for 5 minutes. Cut and serve. Top with fresh basil

Cheesy chicken pasta

I started with this recipe as a guide. However I decided medium cheddar would be much better then sharp, I exchanged green chillies for pimentos, doubled the onion, added garlic, and added corn, oh and I changed the pasta. Rob devoured it, I took it to work and everyone loved it. Not to mention it freezes beautifully.

5 Chicken thighs bone in skin on
2 Cans condensed Cream of Mushroom soup
1 Pound Medium cheddar cheese grated
1/4 Green onion diced
1 Small white onion diced
1 Small can mild green chillies
2 Cloves garlic chopped
1 cup frozen white corn
1 Tsp season salt
1/4 Tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp pepper
12 Oz small shells pasta
3 Cups water


Preheat oven to 375. Boil water and chicken for 20 minutes or until nearly finished cooking. While chicken is cooking chop and dice all ingredients and add to large bowl. Add in 2/3 of your shredded cheese, canned soup, green chillies, and seasoning. Remove chicken and set it aside to cool. Remove two ladles full of broth and add it to the bowl. Add pasta to water and cook until mostly soft. Remove and discard skin and cut chicken from bone. Shred chicken and add to bowl. Drain pasta and add to bowl. Combine all ingredients and place in large baking dish. Top with remaining 1/3 cheese and bake for 15 minutes.

This makes an enormous amount of food. However if you want to freeze it do so after you top with the cheese before putting it in the oven. I would freeze half and cook half. Simply cover with foil, or place in freezer safe Tupperware. This will make about 7-10 servings depending on portion size. I got close to 10 cups of food and it made great left overs.

At this point, I started mixing with my hands.

Printable version
(Click to enlarge)