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Date Shake

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Have you ever been lucky enough to have a date shake?  If you have, then you will understand just why we love them so much…if you have not, we are so sorry to hear that and now it’s time to run to the store and buy these super simple ingredients!  You are gonna freak out!  Welcome to the most delicious sweet treat without any refined sugar.  I literally have dates on hand all the time.  They are a staple in our house and we use them in tons of recipes like these salted dark chocolate date caramel cups  (yes, they are amazing and you need to make them too).  Anywho…date shakes are a family favorite for us but we actually hadn’t made them in quite some time.  I was lucky enough to have my amazing friend send me a beautiful box of fresh dates from Rancho Meladuco Date Farm in California.  Let me just say this….OMG!!  They are literally candy!!  So sweet and just pure perfection and that was the real inspiration for the date shakes.  They deserved to be the star of the show!  With these simple ingredients though, you too can make your own date shake!

All you need is banana, cinnamon, dates (of course), some greek yogurt, pure vanilla and almond milk (or milk of your choice).  Who knows, you may even have all of these ingredients in your kitchen already!  Just blend all of the deliciousness together and you are good to go!!  You are gonna be blown away with how good this shake is!

Date Shake
 
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Serves: 1-2 (makes 2½ C)
Ingredients
  • 1 frozen banana
  • 6 medjool dates, pitted
  • ¼ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp vanilla
  • ½ C 0% greek yogurt
  • 1 C almond milk
  • ½ C crushed ice
*optional - ground vanilla to garnish
Instructions
  1. Blend all ingredients together except for ground vanilla. Transfer to a glass and serve with ground vanilla on top if available.

Pitaya Bowl

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Not only is Pitaya (aka Dragon Fruit) a gorgeous vibrant pink color, it’s also super delicious AND a total health powerhouse!  Just to give you a little insight, dragon fruit is loaded with magnesium, high in fiber, rich in antioxidants, a good source of iron, rich in Vitamin C and B2…oh, and these dragon fruit packets also happen to be organic and non GMO! Boom!! Convinced of the health benefits yet? You really can’t go wrong with food that tastes amazing and is good for you.  If you’ve never had the pleasure of tasting a pitaya bowl, now is the time.  It’s kinda like a thicker smoothie in a bowl with lots of yummy toppings and we are here to make it easy for you to get this recipe on the table.

The pitaya comes in these frozen packets and can be found in your freezer section next to the acai packets.  Basically, the hard work is done for you!  You can check out the Pitaya Plus website for retailers near you at https://www.pitayaplus.com. You just need to empty the packets into your blender and add the other ingredients we listed below.  I will mention that we noted in the instructions that you only add the solid parts of the full fat coconut cream…when you open the can of the cream, there will be both solids and liquids inside…this is normal…but just use the solids to thicken up your fruit mixture. We made this one with frozen mango and a little almond milk, poured it into the bowl and topped it with some of our favorite fruit, chia seeds, granola, a drizzle of honey and of course, unsweetened coconut flakes.  Oh my yum!! You are gonna be blown away when you try this.

Let us know what you think!!  Enjoy!

 

Pitaya Bowl
 
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Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 C frozen dragonfruit or pitaya (can purchase in the frozen section in packets next to the acai packets 2 packets = approx 1 C)
  • 1 C frozen mango
  • ¼ C full fat coconut cream - white solids only
  • 2 tsp raw honey + more for drizzle
  • 2 Tbsp coconut or almond milk
  • 1 kiwi, skin removed and sliced
  • ½ banana, sliced
  • ¼ C blueberries
  • 1 Tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 1 tsp chia seeds
  • ¼ C granola
Instructions
  1. In a high powered blender add pitaya (dragonfruit), mango, coconut cream, honey and coconut milk. Blend until incorporated.
  2. Top with all remaining ingredients or use whatever fruit/nut/granola combo you prefer.

Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread French Toast with Fresh Strawberries

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Okay, we are not gonna lie, we get more requests for this chocolate chunk banana bread than we can even count.  Sorry to brag but it’s true.  For some reason, this bread is just insanely good!!  It’s so delicate and moist (yep), and bursting with sweet banana flavor (probably because we use 3-4 bananas in the recipe) but then you add in the sweet chocolate surprise and Wow!  Outa this world.  The people come running when it comes out of the oven.  No joke!  So…the story of the banana bread french toast goes like this…we had a loaf on the counter one Saturday morning and literally had this brilliant idea (call it an epiphany) to use the banana bread for the french toast instead of just regular ol bread.  We cannot explain where these ideas come from but we are not going to question it…we just follow our instincts!  Yea, so you can only imagine how that went over!!  It was deliciously insane and that is why we must share it with you.

You might not believe that this bread can get any better than it already is but we are here to tell you that IT CAN!  I mean, dredging bread in an egg mixture and cooking it up in a pan, then drizzling it with pure maple syrup, fresh strawberries and a sprinkle of powdered sugar is pure magic!  The kids and hubby have requested this one many times…who can blame them?  Dad will LOVE this recipe so look no further….serve Dad this for breakfast on Father’s Day and he is guaranteed to have the best start to his day!


Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread French Toast with Fresh Strawberries
 
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Serves: 2
Ingredients
For the French Toast:
  • 4 slices banana bread (see recipe below)
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 C fresh strawberries, sliced
  • 100% pure maple syrup
  • optional - powdered sugar for dusting
For the Banana Bread:
  • 3-4 extra ripe bananas mashed
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ C coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp 0% plain greek yogurt
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 C packed dark brown sugar
  • 1½ C unbleached flour - can substitute GF flour
  • ⅓ C semi sweet chocolate chunks (optional)
Instructions
For the French Toast:
  1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Dip each side of banana bread into the eggs. Cook each side of banana bread for about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and drizzle with maple syrup, top with strawberries and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
For the Banana Bread:
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl add all of the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Add brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking soda and mix. Add flour and mix until ingredients are combined. Fold in chocolate chunks.
  2. Grease loaf pan (we like to use coconut oil spray). Spoon batter into loaf pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

Chocolate Zucchini Banana Muffins

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So here’s the story on these chocolatey, sweet muffins of deliciousness.  My son had a request for “chocolate muffins” the other day.  In typical fashion, I took this request to heart but of course, I had to do something to doctor them up.  If there’s a chance that I can sneak in something green, you better believe it’s gonna happen.  And here’s the deal folks, zucchini is magical.  You heard it here today…please trust us…you can shred zucchini and throw it into so many different recipes and “the people” won’t even know!  We do it all the time in sauces, breads, muffins and all kinds of other dishes as well.

You start by simply combining the wet ingredients into a bowl.  Shred up that zucchini and add it in there too.  This recipe is really fast and easy.  That’s probably why we like it so much.  Well, that and the fact that these muffins are like outa this world!! They are so moist (yep, said it) and super chocolatey.  And don’t forget…they have zucchini so they are good for you!

After you combine the wet ingredients, just slowly add in the dry one’s and give it a stir.  Look at how good that looks!  Yum. Just don’t overmix your batter now…that will give your muffins a tuff texture.  Nobody likes a tough muffin.  Right?  So, get the batter nicely mixed and fill those muffin cups about 2/3 full…top with a few extra chocolate chips if you’re feeling crazy, and pop them in the oven for about 15 – 18 minutes.  Keep an eye on them so you don’t overcook them.  You are gonna thank us for these…we know it!


Chocolate Zucchini Banana Muffins
 
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Serves: 12
Ingredients
  • 1 banana - smashed
  • 1 egg
  • ¼ C coconut oil
  • 1 Tbs. 0% greek yogurt
  • 1½ tsp vanilla
  • 1 Tbs. pure maple syrup
  • ¼ C almond milk
  • 1 C shredded zucchini
  • 1½ C flour
  • ½ C packed brown sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3 Tbs. cocoa powder
  • ⅓ C chocolate chips + more for top
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 325°
  2. In a medium bowl, mix egg, coconut oil, greek yogurt, vanilla, maple syrup and almond milk until combined.
  3. Add in the cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, brown sugar, and flour and stir thoroughly. Fold in the banana, zucchini and chocolate chips.
  4. Line muffin tin with paper liners and fill cups about ⅔ full with mixture. Sprinkle tops with a few additional chocolate chips. Bake for 15-18 minutes until cooked through.

Guiltless Shamrock Shake

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The shamrock shake is something we look forward to every year around St. Patty’s day.  The only problem is they are not exactly healthy.  We decided to come up with our own version with all of the fresh minty taste but without the mint chocolate chip ice cream.  Believe it or not you won’t miss the ice cream when you taste our “healthy” version.

Packed with frozen bananas, spinach, greek yogurt, fresh mint and some other key ingredients you will be making this shake again and again.  It’s also kid approved, as you can see Blaise was loving his shake!

If you’re looking to cut the fat and calories this St. Patty’s day but still want to indulge in the quintessential Shamrock Shake, look no further.  We guarantee you will love this shake just as much as Blaise does!


Guiltless Shamrock Shake
 
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Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • 1 frozen banana (approx 1 C, sliced)
  • 1 C spinach, packed
  • approx 12 fresh mint leaves
  • ¼ C 0% Greek yogurt
  • ½ C almond milk - or milk of choice
  • ¼ tsp vanilla extract
  • ¼ tsp peppermint extract
  • 1 Tbsp agave nectar
  • tiny pinch kosher salt
  • 1 Tbsp shaved chocolate to top (can also use mini chocolate chips or cacao nibs)
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients except shaved chocolate in a blender. Blend on high speed until smooth. Pour into a cup and top with shaved chocolate, serve immediately.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

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We are kicking off our pumpkin craze with this amazing pumpkin smoothie.  Think pumpkin pie in a glass but without the guilt and all of the glory. Everyone looks forward to this time of year when pumpkin mania is in full swing and we are riding that bandwagon too.  I have an extra pep in my step when I go to Starbucks  to find the return of the forever anticipated pumpkin spice latte, it’s like the best day ever.  Or when I go to the grocery store and find that the pumpkin fairy made a visit and sprinkled pumpkin food all over the store. Score!  So why  not a pumpkin smoothie too?  Um duh, why not?

I think I have made this every single day for the last 5 days.  Nope, not sick of it yet but talk to me in November. This is a dairy free, naturally sweetened with dates, lick the inside of the cup and blender type of smoothie.  If you are a pumpkin lovah this smoothie is calling your name!

psmoothie

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
 
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Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 3 medjool dates, pitted
  • ½ C pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • ½ C Greek 0% yogurt
  • 1 large frozen banana (1 C)
  • ½ tsp vanilla
  • ⅛ tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • ⅛ tsp ground cinnamon + more for topping
  • 1 C almond milk
  • ½ C crushed ice
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients to a blender and blend on high until mixed. Pour into glasses and top with additional cinnamon or nutmeg if desired.

Tropical Green Smoothie

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When in doubt…make a smoothie! When in doubt about what to have for breakfast or when in doubt about what to make the kids for an after school snack, a smoothie is always the perfect solution. The blender seems to be running around the clock in our house, between my 3 kids and my husband and I, someone is always requesting a smoothie of some sort. We tend to get on kicks of our favorite flavor combinations; currently we are slightly obsessed with this Tropical Green Smoothie. It’s a great way to give your kids their greens and fill them up at the same time!

tropicalsmoothie

greensmoothie

Tropical Green Smoothie
 
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Serves: Makes 2½ C
Ingredients
  • 1 C frozen pineapple (can use fresh)
  • 1C frozen banana - approximately 1 banana
  • 2 c packed fresh spinach
  • 1½ C unsweetened almond milk, or other nut or dairy milk of choice
  • 4 medjooli dates, pitted
Good Thyme Tip - If the pineapple and banana are not frozen, add ½ C of chopped ice.
To better prepare, cut bananas into bite size pieces and store in a ziploc bag in the freezer. you will be prepped and ready to go anytime you want a smoothie!
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.