Spiced Carrot Muffins

I have been on the hunt for the past while to find a good carrot cake recipe. I LOVE carrot cake and so does the husband. I had a good recipe but it used way too much maple syrup (a.k.a. GOLD at our house). That stuff is way too expensive to use massive amounts of in one recipe. After a couple of not so good recipes, I finally found one that we will be keeping around for a while! The best thing about this recipe is that it doesn't use any maple syrup, yet is still very healthy. I found the recipe in Ellie Kreiger's cook book The Food You Crave (which has several great recipes!). This batch of muffins is a bit different than the last. I didn't have any canola oil, so I used additional applesauce and some fat free lemon yogurt. They turned out wonderful! I also added raisins and walnuts because carrot cake is not carrot cake without them to me. These are also wonderful with cream cheese frosting or a scoop of frozen yogurt. I hope you enjoy!!!


Carrot Cake Muffins
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
3/4cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
walnuts (optional)
raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the first 6 ingredients (dry ingredients). In a seperate bowl, combine oil, sugar, applesauce and eggs. Mix until well combined. Add shredded carrots to wet mixture and then add the vanilla. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix until almost all combined. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and fold in until combined. Add raisins and nuts. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and spoon batter in 2/3 full. Bake the muffins for 18-20 minutes.

*I usually double the recipe and freeze them for a great snack!

Superbowl Nachos

My husband hasn't always been a big Superbowl guy. This year, however, was different. He is a BIG Colts fan. So this year, we made a bigger deal out of Superbowl Sunday and actually made a food associated with the Superbowl....NACHOS! He was SO excited to eat these. I made them with homemade corn tortilla chips. They are much easier to make than they sound. Plus they are baked and not fried like regular chips. You can top these with anything that sounds good to you. I used taco seasoned beef (you could easily use turkey), cheese, olives, diced roma tomatoes, guacomole, and salsa.

To make the chips, get a stack of corn tortillas. Cut them in half, then cut each half into thirds so that out of each tortilla you get six chips. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spread the tortilla triangles out on a cookie sheet and squeeze a lime swiftly over them. Next, spray them lightly with non-stick cooking spray and sprinkle with salt. Bake the chips until they get crispy and very light brown. About 8 minutes. Pull them out and flip them over. bake them again for an additional 4 minutes or so or until desired crispiness is achieved. Let them cool before serving.

After the chips are done, you can continue to top them with whatever you would like. These are always a big hit at our house.

Enjoy!

Dakota Smashed Pea and Barley Soup

There is no question that this soup has an unusual, somewhat concerning color. There isn't much that can be done about that. However, this is one of the best soups I have ever had. If you have ever had California Pizza Kitchen's Dakota Smashed Pea and Barley soup, then you know what this soup tastes like. This soup is every bit as good and just may possibly be better! The best part is that it is so easy and inexpensive! I have been on a serious budget kick lately. I have been trying to see just how many meals I can make on few ingredients. For whatever reason, I have not been wanting to spend money on anything...including groceries. That is unusual for me. Food is one thing that I usually don't hesitate spending money on...I justify it because it is a necessity. Anyway, I served this soup with a salad with grilled chicken and a whole wheat roll. DELICIOUS!!!

Dakota Smashed Pea and Barley Soup

2 cups split peas

4-5 cups water

4 cups chicken broth

1 onion, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/2-1 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 cup barley (dried)-I used quick cooking

2 medium-large carrots diced

2 ribs celery, diced

salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the split peas. Add the peas, 4-5 cups water, 4 cups broth, onion, garlic, parsley, sugar, salt, pepper and thyme to a soup pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer for 1-1 1/2 hours or until the peas are soft. Cook the 1/2 cup barley according to package instructions. When the split pea mixture has become thick and the peas are soft, use a hand held immersion blender to blend the mixture to a smooth consistency. Add the barley, carrots and celery and simmer for another 20 minutes. Top with fresh diced green onions.

This soup thickens A LOT when it sits.