Banana Granola Bars (GF, Added-Sugar Free, Vegan)

I live off of this protein bar recipe. They are excellent, and all natural, and not in the All-Natural Jiffy peanut butter "I'm all natural with just a touch of sugar and palm oil" false-labeling kind of way. I eat one or four everyday- it's probably past the point of moderation, but they call my name, all the time (How do they know my name. Weird, right?). I wish I could tell them to shut up! But that would be mean of me, and I'm very nice so I'm likely just going to keep eating them.

Lately I've been forming them into balls instead of bars since they hold together better that way, and a ball is just way cuter than a bar. Plus, there's a lot of dirty, inappropriate jokes you can make about a batch of balls. Sorry, but it's true. I will restrain myself here but my 16 year-old inner-self really wants to talk about balls.

As much as I love my protein balls, every once in a while, I need to switch it up. I also love granola bars and banana bread, so this recipe is my take on a Re-Boot-friendly granola bar/banana bread recipe. They are soft and chewy (with just a little crunch) and taste every bit a sinful snack, but I promise, these are loaded with good for you stuff. It has no refined sugar - the only sugar comes from fruit, and if you use gluten-free oats, it's perfect for wheat-free-ers. You also won't find any butter or eggs here (all your vegan friends are going to love you. No vegans in your life? C'mon. Go find one. Everyone needs to have at least one token vegan friend, otherwise dinner parties are way too easy). The fat comes from nuts and coconut. While there is some debate on the health benefits of coconut, it appears to be metabolized quickly and used as energy immediately (rather than stored), and thus, it is not a bad choice, especially if you love the taste. There's lots of research being done right now with coconut related to other health benefits, like alzheimer's and cardiovascular health, so stay tuned. Anyway, these bars, not balls, are DE-licious. The first batch I made was OK, but after a little tweaking, I think it's just about right.

Mission Healthy Snacks Beyond Balls: Accomplished.

Banana Granola Bars

Yield: 12 bars

Dry ingredients:

•   2/3 cup gluten-free rolled oats

•   1/2 cup almond meal

•   1/3 cup chopped walnuts

•   2 Tbsp sunflower seeds

•   1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

•   2 Tbsp chia seeds

•   2 Tbsp Cacao powder (I love Cacao Magic from thephilosophie.com)

•   1/3 cup dried, unsweetened fruit (original recipe calls for chocolate chips) – I like the organic mix sold at Costco made with cherries, blueberries, goji berries, and cranberries

•   1/4 tsp cinnamon (add more to taste)

•   1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt

Wet ingredients:

•   3/4 cup mashed ripe banana (about 2 medium)

•   1/4 cup natural smooth almond butter

•   ¼ cup natural peanut butter

•   5 large pitted dates, chopped up (will be mushy)

•   1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line an 8-inch square pan parchment paper.

2. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl.

3. Mash bananas until smooth. Stir together the banana and all the wet ingredients in a bowl.

4. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir until combined. The dough should be sticky.

5. Scoop batter into prepared pan. Spread out the batter evenly.

6. Bake at 350F for 22-26 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the bread is firm to touch. Let cool before slicing. 

Miso Ginger Poached Salmon with Bok Choy

The beginnings to this recipe were a total nightmare. The idea was born at Trader Joe's while I was shopping with my four perfectly behaved children. Really relaxing, let me tell you. It's always the same drama just with different samples - this time Lowen spilled his red pepper soup sample on the ground, and I scrambled to clean it up while cursing on the inside (OK, maybe a little on the outside, too). As I was crouched over scrubbing (Georgia takes off running in a different direction and Byron is screaming), my eyes caught glimpse of a miso ginger broth that I've never seen before. They were storing it on the bottom shelf of a small display. I wouldn't have seen it had Lowen not caused a hot, red disaster. To be honest, this wouldn't normally excite me. I'm not really comfortable with Asian cooking - it's just a bit outside of my comfort zone, you know? Well, for whatever reason, that particular day I was struck by a vision - a foodie vision. I pictured poaching salmon in that broth with veggies, sort of like traditional miso soup but way better. As my vision lingered, nice mama returned, and I started throwing possible ingredients in my cart in my typical frantic-I've-Got-Four-kids-dont-judge-me fashion, never really knowing for sure what I'll end up with once I hit check-out.  I got lucky this time with all the right stuff in my cart.

I wanted to give you all (but especially my Re-Booters) a new take on salmon since poaching seems to be a thing of the past. Poaching is old school, but it results in some super tender, flavorful salmon. FYI, for Re-Booters, this is a week 5&6 recipe, as the miso broth contains gluten, sorry!! I had no idea miso is traditionally made with barley, wheat, or rye. There are GF miso pastes available, but I haven't tested them with this recipe yet. I've read that a combo of 4 cups water with 4 Tbsp of GF miso paste would work as a substitute for the broth in this recipe - let me know if you try it. Just be sure to add a touch more ginger if you make your own broth.

My recipe parameters haven't changed: I needed the recipe to be quick and doable for a weeknight, but  good enough for company. The final product turned out so so good. I definitely did a little happy dance, I won't lie. Mission Japanese food: Accomplished.

Miso Ginger Poached Salmon with Bok Choy
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 container miso ginger broth (Trader Joe's), 32 oz
1 1-inch piece ginger, skinned, and finely diced (or shredded)
2 green onions, thinly sliced (green and white parts)
8 oz mushrooms (I used crimini), sliced
1 container bok choy from Trader Joe's (about 6 oz)
salt and pepper
4 5-oz pieces salmon, salted with S&P
toasted sesame oil
sesame seeds

2- 2 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

Directions:

Make rice according to package instructions.

Meanwhile, prepare the poaching liquid by heating broth in large saucepan. Add sliced green onion, mushrooms, grated or diced fresh ginger. Bring to a boil. Add bok choy. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove bok choy. Add seasoned salmon pieces. Cook for about 5 minutes or until flaky with poaching liquid at a simmer (not a hard boil). Remove fish pieces, set aside.

In bowls, divide rice evenly. Pour broth and veggies over rice. Top with a piece of salmon. Drizzle salmon with a little sesame oil and sesame seeds.  Enjoy!

Quinoa-White Bean-Spinach Burgers

Re-Booters rejoice! Here is a great new recipe that will hopefully satisfy any burger junkies. OK, let's be honest. If you are a real burger fiend this recipe probably won't satisfy your craving at all, but I still think you will like it. It's loaded with flavor and plant based protein. I'm eating mine atop salad with avocados tonight, but feel free to serve with a Gluten Free burger bun during week 1 of the Re-Boot. Just remember to keep refined bread products (gluten-free or otherwise) to no more than 2-3 x per week. Another reason to make this recipe: you can make the patties in advance and store them in the fridge for up to 3 days. Love that!

Quinoa-White Bean-Spinach Cakes

serves 8

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quinoa uncooked (i used both black and white)

1 cup water

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp salt

1-15oz can Great Northern white beans, drained, mashed to "chunky baby food"

3 scallions diced thin

2 cloves garlic

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1 cup frozen spinach, thawed

1-1/4 cup GF oats, ground to bread crumb consistency

1/3 cup ground flax seed

1/3 cup almond or cashew flour (or gluten-free flour of choice)

1 egg

pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, combine first 5 ingredients. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over low for about 15-20 mins.

Meanwhile, Combine mashed beans, scallions, garlic, lemon juice, salt, black pepper, spinach, oatmeal, flax meal. nut flour, egg and cayenne. Add cooled quinoa. Stir well. Let sit for 15 minutes. If needed, add more ground flax or ground oats if too sticky. It will be sticky but should hold its form. Form into 8 patties and pan fry for about 4 minutes per side. 

6-Week Re-Boot

I've been working really hard to perfect my 6-week Re-Boot plan over the past few months - it's a food-based cleanse that is a perfect way to start the new year. I'm so excited to be running this cleanse with The Dailey Method in Danville, my second home these days.

We are all starting tomorrow. Although I've gotten an email already from one unnamed over-achiever who started early ;) As the last supper, I've chosen one of my favorites: beef stew with a big chunk of baguette and a glass of vino tinto. Tomorrow, I'll be vegan for the most part and gluten-free. No wine, no dessert. I might even attempt to reduce my coffee habit. We'll see. I'm all about flexibility (thank you, Byron.)

For those of you Re-Booters who are doing this with us, check my blog on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. I will be posting new recipes and thoughts for the week. Let me know if you have any recipe requests - I'm all ears. Lots of love and happy thoughts for an awesome 6 weeks.