Simple Homemade Granola (Grain Free, Protein Packed!)

While we were on vacation earlier this year, I fell in love with the breakfast offered by our hotel. My favorite being their yogurt parfait topped with granola. I ate it every morning, very slowly, as I savored each bite. I had no idea granola could taste so good!

Imagine my delight (sarcasm) when I realized how much sugar and carbs most granola had be it homemade or store bought.

Enter low carb granola! Easy, delicious, and just as crunchy at traditional carb laden granola.

The real kicker, though? There are no oats involved! Now, I love me some oats, but when I tasted this almond flour concoction, I was fairly certain angels started singing with each bite. ;)

Recipe below!

Simple Homemade (grain free) Granola

1 Cup Walnuts, chopped
1 Cup Almonds, slivered
1 Cup Coconut, shredded & unsweetened
1/4 Cup Chia Seeds
1 Cup Almond Flour, blanched
Cinnamon to taste (I added approx. 1/2 teaspoon)
1/4 Tsp. Sea Salt Flakes (you can add a little more for a more sweet & salty mixture)
1/2 Cup Maple Syrup

Preheat oven to 325. Rub a little olive oil over a 13x9 Casserole dish to prevent sticking.

Mix all ingredients together until maple syrup has been fully incorporated. Your mixture will have clumps.

Bake for 16-20 minutes or until mixture turns golden brown.

Enjoy!

Simple Street Steak Tacos

There's a little whole in the wall taco shop that makes the most mouth watering tacos. I'd eat there every day if I could. I tried my hand at street tacos earlier this week, and they were so easy to make! I love that you can adjust the seasonings any way you want to fit YOUR taste buds.

Easy Steak Street Tacos

2 Cups of sliced fajita cut steak (I buy mine pre-sliced to save time!)
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Garlic, chopped
1 Cup Onions, diced

For the sauce:
1 Avocado
1 to 2 tsp. Fresh Lime Juice
Sea Salt & Pepper (to taste)

For the sauce, you'll want to mash & whip the avocado until creamy. Then, add 1 to 2 teaspoons of fresh squeezed lime juice. Add sea salt & pepper (start with about half a teaspoon). Set aside.

In a large skillet, sauté garlic & onions until tender. Add steak. Cook until meet is cooked thoroughly. Immediately serve on tortillas with Avocado cream sauce & fresh cilantro. I added a touch of creole seasoning for an added kick.

Hasta luego!

Simple Garlic Butter Shrimp

Originally published 2017

I really love shrimp. And butter.

It just says classic spring meal to me...made even more perfect when served out on the back patio!

Garlic Butter Shrimp

1lb. Shrimp
1/4 cup Butter, cubed
1 Tablespoon crushed garlic
1/2 teaspoon steakhouse seasoning (I used Colton's All Purpose)
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper (to taste)

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic and mix well. Let simmer for a few minutes to meld flavors.

Next, pour garlic butter over shrimp. Make sure to evenly coat each piece. Then bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 350.

Broil for an additional 5-10 minutes. Watch closely.

Serve with a little cracked pepper, seasoning of choice and voila!

So easy. So good!

Simple Crustless Quiche

I have developed a bad habit over the year: skipping breakfast or worse...eating junk food.

I know, I know. It has been one of my goals this year to start my day off with a healthy, filling breakfast. I've been doing good now that I learned an easy trick: Bulk Cooking! The idea is to make meals that you can eat off throughout the week. For me personally, this only works for breakfast.

One day, I decided to try Crustless Quiche and I fell in love. I tweaked the recipe so that it would be a) clean eating, and b) THM friendly. While I don't follow Trim Healthy Mama to a T, I do follow some of their basic guidelines.

This meal is perfect because it is packed full of protein AND it's such a simple way to get a good dose of greens every morning. You can also tweak the recipe yourself to make it even more enjoyable to your own taste buds. It takes only a few minutes to prepare, and BAM: You've got breakfast for the week ahead.

Simple Crustless Quiche

8 Eggs
1/4 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheese (I like a mixed cheese blend)
1 Cup Fresh Spinach
Seasoned Salt (to taste)
Optional: Add cubed ham or crumbled, cooked sausage

Mix ingredients together and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Just until it starts to golden on top. Serve with sour cream or extra cheese!

Taco Tuesday: Crockpot Taco Meat

I posted that I had made Crockpot Tacos the other night on Instagram, and several folks asked for the recipe. So, here it is! It is super duper easy...I'm not even sure you could call it a "real" recipe, haha!

3/4 Cup of Chunky Salsa

1/4 Cup Restaurant Style Salsa

1 Packet Low Sodium Taco Seasoning

8-10 Frozen Chicken Tenderloins

Place chicken in crockpot, then add salsa & seasonings. Let it cook for 6 hours on low. An hour before serving, you should be able to shred the meat using a large spatula. We topped ours with Verde sauce, and sour cream. Serves 6.

Lemon Balsamic Asparagus

It's spring. Which means lots and lots of fresh spring colors all over the place...which goes for our food as well! ;) I'm a fan of asparagus, and love trying new recipes with it. I made a lemon balsamic asparagus the other night and really enjoyed it. And the recipe was SUPER simple!

Lemon Balsamic Asparagus

1 cluster of asparagus, trimmed
1 teaspoon onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper (to taste)
1/2 Lemon (to taste)

In small saucepan, cook asparagus in water over high heat for 2-3 minutes to soften. Drain. In a medium saucepan, add vinegar, onions, and garlic. Add asparagus, and squeeze lemon juice over asparagus. Saute for 5-10 minutes until desired tenderness. Season with sea salt & cracked pepper. I'll be honest...we really like ours a bit on the salty side. Hence the reason, I recommend "to taste".  ;)

Enjoy!

Pasta Primavera!

One of my favorite things about spring is that the weather is often suitable for outdoor dining. Even more so now that we finally have a table on our back patio! Josh's mom graciously offered us one, and we couldn't resist!

I had made pasta primavera last year, and I fell in love with it. It felt like the perfect meal for our dinner last night. So I got out a few different recipes, and combined the ingredients that I knew both Josh and I would love. Then again, my Italian husband loves just about any pasta. *wink*

The thing about this recipe is that the ingredients are healthy! Lots of veggies, herbs, olive oil, and a pinch of sea salt! The herbs are really the backbone of this meal which offsets the missing unhealthy ingredients often found in pasta. And since I eat a very limited amount of wheat, I substituted with a Quinoa blend penne shell that worked well.

But, I digress. Here's the yummy recipe!

Pasta Primavera

8 ounces of penne noodles (cooked according to directions)
1 half bell pepper, diced
1 half tomato, diced
1 cup of fresh spinach
1/2 teaspoon dry Italian seasoning
1/2 cup mixed cheese, shredded
1/2 teaspoon parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon onion, diced
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper, to taste

While cooking your pasta, add 2 T. of olive oil to skillet on meidum heat. Add onions & garlic. Sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add bell peppers, tomatoes, and spinach. Sauté for 8 to 10 minutes or until the pepper is tender. Add dry seasonings. Drain pasta, and return to heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, and the rest of the ingredients. Mix well. Add sheese, salt, and pepper.

Garnish with additional cheese, and enjoy! Sharing at Delicious Dish, today. :)