Healthy Alternatives

Well, it is 9:45am and I have achieved my goal for the day. Yahoo! Here are some recipes I have looked up to make some healthy meal choices. Once I've made them, I'll let you know if they are any good.


Black Bean Burger

1/2 cup onion, diced
1 can black beans, drained
1/4 cup (or less) flour
2 slices bread, crumbled
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon season salt
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil for frying

Saute onions until soft, 3-5 minutes.

In a large bowl mash beans until almost smooth. I used a pastry blender and it worked well. Add onions and remaining ingredients. Add flour a few tablespoons at a time, combining well after each addition. You may not need the entire 1/4 cup.

Form mixture into patties, about 1/2-inch thick. I used olive oil in a saute pan for the burgers. Cook about 5 minutes per side, until heated through. I will be trying these on the grill this summer.

Garnish as you would like. Serve on whole wheat hamburger buns.

Rick's burgers are pretty simple to make as well. He combined onion and green pepper with the ground beef, formed them into patties and fried until the meat was no longer pink. The burger was then topped with teriyaki sauce, followed by blue cheese and Swiss cheese and garnishes as needed.

PIZZA

1 Corn wrap
30g Low fat cheese
1/2 cup of Tomato Puree (If very thick use less and mix with some water)
1 tomato
4 mushrooms
1/2 green pepper
1/2 yellow pepper
1 Red Onion
Handful of Spinach leaves
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 chicken fillet
Directions
Chop up all the veg and dice the chicken into small chunks. Fry the chicken using a low fat oil spray. Once nearly cooked, add the garlic, onion and peppers. Continue cooking until soft. Then add the tomato and mushrooms and continue to cook for 1/2 min, stirring continuously. Add the tomato puree and most of the cheese and stir until the cheese has melt. Tear the spinach leave with you hands and place a single layer of them on top of the wrap. Then cover with your concoction from the pan and spread out. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and put into a heat oven. Leave there for 5 min or until the wrap edges are crispy but not burnt (will depend on your oven so keep watch). Take out and enjoy! Obviously any veg can be used on this pizza and the chicken is optional but if included makes the meal nice and filling. I use corn wraps because they are small that other wraps, around the size of a personal pizza.

BREAKFAST

Eggs with peppers. I’m not a fan of eggs, but many people love them. Egg whites are healthier than whole eggs. Scramble with a little olive oil, red and green bell peppers, maybe broccoli, onions, black pepper. Goes well with whole-wheat toast.
Cottage cheese and fruit. Get low-fat cottage cheese. Add any kind of fruit. Apples, citrus, berries.
Fresh berries, yogurt, granola. Get low-fat yogurt (not non-fat, as it often has too much sugar) or soy yogurt, cut up some berries or other fruits, add some healthy cereal. I actually use the Kashi Golean Crunch instead of granola, as many brands of granola have way too much fat and/or sugar.
Grapefruit with whole-wheat toast & almond butter. Add a little sugar on top of the grapefruit, and it’s actually pretty good. The almond butter is healthier than peanut-butter, with lots of good protein to fill you up.
Fresh fruit salad. Cut up some apples, melons, berries, oranges, pears, bananas, grapes … any or all or whatever your favorite fruits are. Add a little bit of lime or lemon juice. Perfect.
Protein shake with extras. I use soy protein powder, but whey works well too. Blend up with low-fat milk or soy milk, some frozen blueberries, and perhaps some almond butter or oatmeal. That may sound weird, but it’s actually pretty good, and pretty filling. A little ground flax seed works well too.

Sweet Potato Pancakes
§ 1 cup water
§ 1/2 cup sweet potato puree
§ 1/4 tsp. cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (optional)
§ 1 cup pancake mix
§ Nonstick cooking spray

§ 1 Tbsp. canola or vegetable oil
§ Pure maple syrup, for serving

In a large bowl, mix the water, sweet potato puree, and cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, if using. Add the pancake mix and stir just to combine—the batter should be lumpy.Coat a griddle or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set it over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil, and spoon the batter onto the griddle or pan, using 1/4 cup batter for each pancake.Cook until bubbles form on top of the pancakes and the batter is set, 2 to 3 minutes. Then use a spatula to flip the pancakes and cook them until golden brown on the other side, 2 to 3 minutes. From the book Deceptively Delicious

DESSERT
Healthy Cheesecake Jello
Ingredients:
1 cup Water (bring to boil)
1 package Sugar-free Flavored Jello (such as raspberry)
3/4 cup Fat-free Greek Style Yogurt
2 cups Reduced Fat Cream Cheese
Sugar Substitute (such as Splenda) to taste

Mix Jello mix with boiling water and stir. Add yogurt and cream cheese and mix thoroughly. Let sit in fridge overnight. Serve as-is or top with fresh fruit, if desired.
Serves 8.

Blueberry-Almond Turtles

7 Tbsp (2.5 oz) 60% cocoa bittersweet chocolate chips (such as Ghirardelli)
1/4 cup dried wild blueberries (sold in produce section)
1/4 cup sliced almonds
Microwave chocolate in a glass bowl for 60 to 75 seconds or until melted. Stir in blueberries and nuts, then drop 5 rounded tablespoons onto parchment paper. Cool in refrigerator for 2 to 4 minutes or until firm.
Makes 5 turtles.