Healthy Brownies??

Yep! You heard me right! As far as I can tell, these brownies are gluten free and pretty diabetic friendly. I usually cringe at the thought of making a delicious dessert "healthy," but these were great! The ingredients aren't things that I usually have on hand, but I could get them all at walmart, so they are pretty available. 

1 C dark chocolate chips (if you want to use a bar, it's about 6 ounces)
½ cup coconut milk (either canned, or I used some from "silk" that I got by the milk)
2 eggs
1 ¼ cups almond flour (got in the gluten free section at walmart)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup unsweetened dried dates 

White chocolate chips (optional

Blend dates and coconut milk in blender until dates are broken up in small pieces. Melt dark chocolate chips and coconut milk mixture in a small saucepan over very low heat. When chocolate is completely melted, remove saucepan from heat. Stir eggs into saucepan containing chocolate/coconut milk mixture. Next, stir in almond flour, salt and baking soda. Grease an 8x8 baking dish

with oil of your choice. Pour batter into baking dish, then sprinkle with white chocolate chips over batter. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes. Cool and serve.  Enjoy!

Ranch Potato Salad

I love this potato salad! It is so different from what I am used to, but it so good! I got this recipe from my mother-in-law, and every time I see her bring it to a bbq I know that I am in big trouble, because I always eat WAY too much of it! 

Ranch Potato Salad

What you need:

(*NOTE: I am not going to put the amount of things you need. This is such an easy salad you just add the ingredients to your liking. And it will vary depending on how many potatoes you use. As a general rule, I cook 2 potatoes for each person being served.)

Red Potatoes

Bacon

Green Onions

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Ranch

Clean red potatoes and cut them in to bite size pieces. Put in a pot and fill with water until the potatoes are covered. Bring water to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender. 

While the potatoes are boiling, cut raw bacon in to small pieces and cook in a pan until you reach your desired crispiness. 

Wash and cut green onions in to small pieces. 

Shred cheddar cheese. 

When potatoes are done cooking, drain the liquid and allow them to cool. When they are cool, mix potatoes with bacon, onions and cheese. Add ranch until you have reached your desired consistency. Enjoy!!!

Energy Granola Bars

Lucas just got back from a 4 day hike with the scouts. Since they had to carry all the food they were eating with them on their backs, they mostly had a few different variations of rice and beans, with a few dehydrated eggs. Yuck! So before they left, I made a big pan of these to give them a little something sweet to help them make it through. When Lucas came back he reported that everyone loved these! Some of the boys even hiked back to the truck (it was a VERY steep 1.5 mile hike) to get some more the 2nd day! They were a big hit! 

These are pretty sweet and packed with energy, so I am not sure I would make these just to munch on around the house. But if you are headed out for a hike, these are great!

Energy Granola Bars

from wildbackpacker.com

What you need:

1 C peanut butter

3/4 C honey

3 C quick oatmeal

Plus any other add ins you think sound good!

Combine the peanut butter and honey in a medium saucepan and warm over low heat. Stir constantly until mixed thoroughly. Remove from heat and add in the oatmeal and any optional items. Press into a 9×9 inch ungreased pan and let cool. Cut into bars and store in plastic baggies. No need to refrigerate.Makes 16 (2×2 inch) bars. Enjoy!!

No Bake Cookies

Everyone needs a good no-bake cookie recipe. Kinda like how everyone needs a good chocolate-chip cookie recipe, only this is much easier! We LOVE no bake cookies around here. Most of the time they don't make it long enough to set up, they get scooped up with a spoon and eaten as quickly as possible. I know that a lot of people make their no bakes without the peanut butter. I grew up with peanut butter no bakes, so for me this is just strange!!! It's like a quesadilla without the cheese! But, to each their own I guess. Here is my recipe for peanut butter included no bake cookies! 

No Bake Cookies

What you need:

1/2 C butter

2 C sugar

1/2 C milk

3 C quick oats

4 Tbsp cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 C peanut butter

Melt butter in a 2 qt saucepan. Add  sugar and milk and stir in well. Bring mixture to a rolling boil and boil for 1 minute. Take off heat and add quick oats, cocoa and vanilla. Mix well then add in peanut butter. 

Spread a piece of wax paper on your counter to put the cookies on. Use a tablespoon to scoop the mixture out and place on wax paper. Let set for a minute, and enjoy!!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

I wish that this picture could do this meal justice, but it clearly doesn't. Although it might not look too appetizing in this picture, this recipe is so good! It is one of my favorite quick, go-to meals to make, and Lucas loves it. I have made it a few times for dinner with guests, and everyone else that has tried it loves it also. So this one is a winner!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

You will need:

4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts

4 pieces of swiss american cheese (stay with me here, it is so good!)

8 pieces of lunch meat ham OR 4 thick pieces of ham

bread crumbs/panko /crushed corn flakes or anything else you would like to add to the top

Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pound chicken pieces out until thin. You can use a meat pounder, or if you are like me and don't have one of those quite yet, you can put your chicken between two pieces of wax paper and pound it with a rolling pin. 

Now lets talk about  the fact that this recipe uses american cheese. Yes, it is the kind that comes in their own wrapper. Yes, I normally hate pasteurized cheese and never use it in any other recipes.  Yes, it makes this recipe so extra delicious and the cheese that melts makes a really yummy sauce! If you are REALLY opposed to using it, I understand. And normal swiss cheese will still work great. But if you want to go out on a limb, I really don't think you will be disappointed!

So layer your cheese and ham on your chicken and roll up. You can keep it together with a toothpick if it doesn't look like it is going to stay.

Sprinkle your bread crumbs or whatever else you want to use for a crunch on top and add any other seasonings you like.  I use some regular old salt and pepper, and if I am feeling fancy I will add some dried herbs. Whatever sounds good!

Put the four pieces of chicken in a 8x8 casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked through. 

Enjoy!!