Fun Healthy Recipes is Back!

After a brief (okay, maybe a little extended) summer hiatus, Fun Healthy Recipes is back and ready to get you healthy, happy and fit just in time for the holidays!

Keep checking back over the next few weeks for awesome recipes that showcase delicious, nutrient-packed foods that will keep you satisfied and feeling your best.

Upcoming Recipes:

• Zucchini Marinara
• Cilantro Shrimp
• Asian Lettuce Cups
• Cream Cheese-Swirled Brownies
• Braised Kale with Tomatos
• Korean Chicken with Minted Cucumbers
• Roasted Peach with Amaretti Crumble
• Grilled Lime-Soy Tuna with Noodles

Awesome Chocolate-Cherry "Heart Smart" Cookies

It's been a while since I've posted a healthy (healthier) dessert, and trust me these cookies are outstanding. The ingredients are simple, and somehow sweets always taste so much better when you know exactly what's in them. So bake up a batch of these and bring them into the office to brighten up everyone's day, and let them know what health benefits they're getting!

Dried Cherries: First and foremost, like other fruits and veggies that are rich in color, Cherries are chock-full of antioxidants. The antioxidant that gives Cherries their deep red color is a phytonutrient called anthocyanins. These guys not only protect our cells against free radical damage, but also contribute to Cherries's awesome anti-inflammatory properties. A recent University of Michigan study revealed a cherry-enriched diet reduced inflammation markers in animals by up to 50 percent. Also, recent research links anthocyanins with reduced muscle soreness in active adults. Hi, awesome reason to incorporate cherries into your diet (Especially if you're training for any sort of race)!


Oats: We also can't talk about this recipe without mentioning the heart-healthy benefits of oats. Why are oats so great for maintaining heart health and keeping bad cholesterol (LDL) down? It's in the fiber content! Oats contain both insoluble & soluble fiber. The insoluble fiber is the kind that helps keep your digestive system regular, where as the soluble fiber plays a direct roll in maintaining cholesterol levels. Soluble fiber turns into a gel-like substance when consumed. It then traps cholestorol-laden substances (i.e. bile acids, etc) and carries them out of your system. Thus, reducing the overall absorption of cholesterol into the blood stream.

So do your heart a favor and try out these cookies! At 94 calories per cookie it's virtually guilt-free!


Chocolate-Cherry "Heart Smart" Cookies

Ingredients
1.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1/3 cup)
1.5 ounces whole-wheat flour (about 1/3 cup)
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup dried cherries
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
Cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours and next 3 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk.

3. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; add brown sugar, stirring until smooth. Add sugar mixture to flour mixture; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add cherries, vanilla, and egg; beat until combined. Fold in chocolate. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes. Cool on pans 3 minutes or until almost firm. Remove cookies from pans; cool on wire racks.

Carrot Cake Pancakes for a Lazy Sunday

Today was one of those lazy Sundays for me where I took about an hour to wake up and then lazed around in my sweats relaxing for a while. It's this kind of Sunday that presents opportunity to get some friends together and make brunch... The below Carrot Cake Pancake recipe from Cooking Light is absolutely great for a lazy Sunday and because of the 2 cups of grated carrot, this proves to be a much healthier brunch option than many other breakfast options!


Carrots: This super versatile veggie offers a dense, sweet taste that allows it to seemlessly be incorporated into sweeter foods (i.e.- pancakes & other breads). Carrots are known universally for keeping your eyes healthy. How does this happen? Carrots deliver great levels of beta-carotene which the liver converts into Vitamin A when a beta-carotene source such as carrots are consumed. The Vitamin A then travels to the retina where it is converted into a pigment necessary for night vision! Kinda cool how it all breaks down :)
The carotenoids found in carrots (beta-carotene) aid in over all health outside of maintaining vision. High carotenoid intake has been linked to decreased incidence of bladder, cervix, prostate, colon, larynx, & esophagus cancers. Consuming foods rich in carotenoids (carrots, sweet potatoes...) can also protect against lung cancer.
Carrots are also high in fiber & potassium. Fiber helps manage your weight, fills you up, keeps you regular, & also promotes heart health. Potassium, fun fact, is the 3rd most abundant mineral in the body, that's great to know! Consumption helps prevent stroke, maintains level blood pressure, and aids in heart, brain & kidney function.

The below recipe is super delicious in and of itself, but now that you know why it's healthy there's really no reason to not try it out! It's Sunday Brunch, you're allowed to splurge :)

Carrot Cake Pancakes
courtesy of cookinglight.com

1 1/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c chopped walnuts, toasted
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 ground nutmeg
Dash of ground cloves
Dash of ground ginger
1/4 c brown sugar
3/4 c low-fat buttermilk
1 tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 c finely grated carrot
Cooking spray
3 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey

In a mixing bowl, comine Flour & next 7 ingredients (through ginger) & stir w/ a whisk. Combine 1/4 c brown sugar & next 4 ingredients (through eggs). Add sugar mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Fold in 2 cups Grated Carrot.

Heat lg nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan w cooking spray. Spoon (4) 1/4 c batter mounds onto pan, spreading w a spatula. cook for 2 mins or until tops are covered w bubbles and edges look cooked. Carefully turn pancakes over, cook 1 min or until bottoms are lightly browned. Repeat w remaining pancake batter.

In a small mixing bowl combine butter and honey to serve w pancakes. (2 pancakes=315 cals)

This amazing recipe is perfect for anyone who appreciates any sort of carrot cake, zuchini bread, pumpkin pie, etc recipes because it incorporates all those great spices! That said, this one's for you SKT :)



www.whfoods.com
www.organicfacts.net

Let's Talk Strawberries

I know what you're thinking, strawberries are really not in season. But let's face it, when you're entertaining, after serving a heavy meal a la Eggplant Lasagna, you really want to offer your guests a light dessert option (And they will thank you for that!). The below recipe... not even a recipe, more like an entertaining trick... is great for out of season strawberries that tend to be tart.

Strawberries are a great source of Manganese, Fiber, Iodine, Potassium, B Vitamins, and Vitamin K. Most notably though, 1 cup of strawberries provides over 100% of your RDA of Vitamin C . I've talked a bit about Vitamin C this winter, but don't worry there's a reason for that. Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin. Unlike fat soluble vitamins (Vitamins A, D, E, & K) which are stored in fat in the body until they are needed, water soluble vitamins travel through the blood stream, and then whatever isn't used is urinated out. So we need to keep replenishing. Instead of eating orange after orange, spice it up with some berries :)
Vitamin C is important for a few other reasons as well. It's vital to the production of collagen, which is found virtually everywhere in the body. I mean really, it's found in connective tissue, cartilage, and within various types of cells. It also is important for eye health and bone health.

Strawberries & Triple Sec

4 c. strawberries quartered (Adjust size as needed depending on how many people are eating)
1/8 c triple sec

I have my mom to thank for this one. She showed me this trick and it's so useful when hosting. There are never any berries left! Put strawberries in a big bowl, pour triple sec over. Use your (clean) fingers to toss to coat the berries. Cover with saran wrap and place in fridge for 1-2 hours. Bring out right at dessert time for a fun treat! It's so simple you can focus on your guests instead of food




http://nutrition.about.com/od/healthyfood1/a/berries.htm
http://kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/food/vitamin.html

Carrot Cupcakes to Die For!

So you're 8 days into the New Year and for all of you who have been diligently going to the gym or eating super healthy this week you deserve a treat and Ellie Kreiger's Carrot Cake recipe is the perfect way to reward yourself while still maintaining a health-minded focus!

Carrots: This recipe is so great because it's chock-full of carrots! We all know carrots are super high in beta-carotene (Which your body stores and converts to Vitamin A as needed). However, I just talked about Vitamin A in my Sweet Potato post, so let's keep it fresh and talk about Vitamin K!

1 cup of chopped carrots contains about 20% of your recommended intake of Vitamin K. This cool vitamin most notably aids in blood clotting by slowing the process of bleeding. Fun fact- it is often given to patients before surgery to prevent excessive bleeding.
On top of this, Vitamin K also helps the body absorb Calcium! That's awesome news for those of us with weaker bones or for women who may be loosing bone density as they age.
Lastly, Vitamin K also helps prevent a hardening of the arteries and therefore keeps your heart healthy. Hardened arteries and weak bones? Doesn't sound like a walk through the park... So, increase your Vitamin K intake and take a preemptive approach at your future health!

Awesome Carrot Cupcakes w Cream Cheese Frosting

Cupcakes:
* 3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1/4 cup canola oil
* 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 1/2 cup natural applesauce
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 1/2 cups finely shredded carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
Cream Cheese Frosting:
* 4 ounces 1/3 fat cream cheese
* 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
* 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

Sift together the first 6 ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar and eggs until well combined. Whisk in the applesauce, vanilla and carrots. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

With an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and lemon zest until smooth and creamy. Frost and serve!

Eat smart tip: Try making the below recipe in mini-muffin tins to reduce the serving size. Keep them frozen and bring out one or two at a time to satisfy any sweet cravings you might have. (Bake for approx 8-10 mins)

http://health.learninginfo.org/benefits-of-vitamin-k.htm
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=21