Healthy Mac & Cheese

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The other day I saw an awesome recipe on a very interesting blog I’m following. It’s THE LEAN GREEN BEAN blog. By the way you should all follow her amazing blog!

It was a mac & cheese recipe.. but an healthier version of the one you can found in a box, hehe! (see her recipe HERE) But like always I didn’t follow the exact recipe and made changes in it..
I guess her version is really good too!

It may look a little weird in your plate, but it’s super delicious and filled with super good things for your body (How to eat lentils and quinoa at the same time and almost don’t taste them.. you only taste the cheesy pasta!) Hopefully there is some leftovers from tonight.. I’ll eat them tomorrow! *yeah*

Like for every recipes.. you can change whatever you want to change.. not the same veggies.. red lentils.. no quinoa.. cheddar and not mozz.. it’s totally up to you!

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Servings

4 to 6

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Ingredients

* 3 cups pasta, uncooked ( I used cavatappi pasta)

* 4 cups vegetables, diced ( I used 1 yellow bell pepper, 1 green zucchini, 2 green onions, 6 mushrooms)

* 2 cloves garlic, minced

* 2 tablespoons butter

* 2 tablespoons all-purposed flour

* 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

* 1 1/3 cup milk (I used 3.25%)

* 1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence

* 1/4 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed

* 2 1/2 cups cooked lentils

* 1 cup cooked quinoa

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Directions

* Preheat oven to 400′F.

* Cook pasta, drain and set aside.

* Wash and cut veggies.

* In a pan, saute vegetables and garlic until tender. Remove from pan and set aside. In the same pan, melt butter, then stir in flour. Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly.

* Add the mozzarella cheese and the Herbes de provence. Stir until the cheese is totally melted.

* Stir in the cooked veggies, spinach, cooked lentils, cooked quinoa.

* Add the pasta and mix well then transfer everything into a casserole dish.

* Bake for 10-15 minutes.

* Remove from the oven, Serve and Enjoy!

Blackberry Ice Cream

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-ICE CREAM MAKER RECIPE-

Still totally addicted to my ice cream maker.. hahaha!!! Next one will be an orange sorbet.. can’t wait to taste it! I’m sure it will be super awesome like all the previous kind I try

The fun thing about blackberry ice cream is that it’s very hard to find in stores, but also the color.. it’s soo lovely (and delicious!) I’m a super huge berry fan.. all kinds.. blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries… name it! Can’t wait to be in July so I’ll be able to use fresh berries from Quebec! (They are the best!)

I wonder how babies taste what we eat.. since doctors and researches says that they can taste what you eat in your breast milk.. I guess we have the same tastes because he’s always drinking like crazy, hahahaha!

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Servings

About 5 cups (1.25L)

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Ingredients

* 1 1/2 cup fresh blackberries

* 3/4 cup milk (I used 3.25% milk)

* 2/3 cup sugar

* A pinch of salt

* 3/4 cup 35% cream

* 3/4 cup 10% cream

* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used my Mexican vanilla)

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Directions

* Before even starting the recipe, make sure your ice cream maker bowl is in the freezer, in fact it takes about 16-24 hours to be totally frozen. I put it in my huge vertical freezer and it takes about 16 hours to be rock solid.

* Wash the blackberries.

* Put the blackberries in a food processor and pulse until you reach the texture you want (I wanted a smooth texture with some tiny pieces in it)

* In a bowl, whisk  the sugar, the milk and the salt together until all the sugar is dissolved. Stir in cream and vanilla. Add the fruit puree and mix well.

* Cover and put the bowl in the refrigerator for few hours (I left mine there for about 2-3 hours)

* Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and put it on. Calculate about 20 minutes to reach the perfect texture. (the mixture has to thickened)

* Since the ice cream will be kind of soft, if you want a more firm texture, remove the ice cream from the bowl and put it in another freezer safe container. Freeze for few hours. (This is what I did) (don’t freeze your ice cream in the ice cream maker bowl.. use another container!)

* Remove from the freezer and serve.

* Enjoy!

Vegan Oatmeal & Raisins Cookies

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-VEGAN-

My big girl Dalie is always hungry (haha!) so I’m always making her some healthier snacks that what you can found at the grocery store.. and you know what… she always love everything I make for her. *Yeah!* #proudmom

A little secret… I eat them too, haha it’s like eating a bowl of oatmeal but in a cookie shape, hahaha!

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Servings

20 small cookies

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Ingredients

* 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

* A pinch of salt

* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

* 1/2 cup brown sugar

* 2 tablespoons maple syrup

* 1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce

* 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

* 1 1/2 cups oats

* 1/2 cup raisins

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Directions

* Preheat oven 350′F.

* In a bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.

* In another bowl, mix brown sugar, maple, apple sauce, coconut oil and vanilla. Add the flour mixture and stir. Let sit for few minutes.

* Add oats and raisins, then mix.

* Drop by spoonfuls on a baking sheet.

* Bake for 12-13 minutes.

* Remove from the oven and let cool a few minutes before putting them on a cooling rack.

* Enjoy!

Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

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ICE CREAM MAKER RECIPE

This one was for my husband… and he was VERY happy about it, it was super delicious! I used 35% cream and not the usual 10% because the higher your fat % is, the creamier the ice cream will be!

Let me tell you than even plain (with the cookies..) is was fantastic! the texture was PERFECT!! and the taste… Mmmmm!!!

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Servings

About 5 cups (1.25L)

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Ingredients

* 3/4 cup milk (I used 3.25% milk)

* 2/3 cup sugar

* A pinch of salt

* 1 1/2 cups cream (I used 35% cream)

* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used my Mexican vanilla)

* 12-15 cookies (the oreo type), chopped

* 1/2 cup chocolate chips, chopped

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Directions

* Before even starting the recipe, make sure your ice cream maker bowl is in the freezer, in fact it takes about 16-24 hours to be totally frozen. I put it in my huge vertical freezer and it takes about 16 hours to be rock solid.

* In a bowl, whisk  the sugar, the milk and the salt together until all the sugar is dissolved. Stir in cream and vanilla.

* Cover and put the bowl in the refrigerator for few hours (I left mine there for about 2-3 hours)

* Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and put it on. Calculate about 20 minutes to reach the perfect texture. (the mixture has to thickened) When the texture is fine, add the cookies a little at a time then the chocolate chips.

* Since the ice cream will be kind of soft, if you want a more firm texture, remove the ice cream from the bowl and put it in another freezer safe container. Freeze for few hours. (This is what I did) (don’t freeze your ice cream in the ice cream maker bowl.. use another container!)

* Remove from the freezer and serve.

* Enjoy!

Strawberry Sorbet

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-ICE CREAM MAKER RECIPE-

Yesterday I had family members (mom and sis) who came to my house to spend the day… so I made this sorbet because my sis is lactose intolerant.

It was very delicious and everyone enjoyed it! Especially our big girl Dalie, she’s like me, a big fan of frozen desserts, haha, and it’s ok since it’s almost like eating plain strawberries.. but frozen! It’s very hot since 2 weeks in Quebec (over 25′C each day and super sunny, no rain at all) so it’s always refreshing to eat something cold.

Another thing.. I made a recipe without a huge amount of sugar, since my husband is dieting. (Ohhh and even if I’m not, I’m trying to get in a better shape too.. I already lost 18.5 pounds in 3 weeks (since my boy is born) Hooray!) )

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Servings

4-5 servings

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Ingredients

* 1/3 cup water

* 1/3 cup sugar

* 1 pound of fresh strawberries

* 1 tablespoon lemon juice

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Directions

* Before even starting the recipe, make sure your ice cream maker bowl is in the freezer, in fact it takes about 16-24 hours to be totally frozen. I put it in my huge vertical freezer and it takes about 16 hours to be rock solid.

* In a saucepan over low heat, combine water and sugar. Stir until the sugar is totally dissolved. Boil for 1-2 minutes then remove from heat. Pour the mixture into a container and put it in the fridge.

* Put all the strawberries (washed and cut) into a food processor and process until the strawberries are pureed. In a bowl combine the puree and the lemon juice. cover and put it in the fridge.

* Once the syrup and the fruits are cold, combine both.

* Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and put it on. Calculate about 15 minutes to reach the perfect texture. (the mixture has to thickened)

* Since the sorbet will a little softer than usual, if you want a more firm texture, remove the ice cream from the bowl and put it in another freezer safe container. Freeze for few hours. (This is what I did)

* Remove from the freezer, wait few minutes and serve.

* Enjoy!

Banana Chips

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I love bananas, in every form, fresh, dried, muffins, pancakes, bread… it’s such an awesome fruit!!! It’s rich in potassium and vitamins.

This kind of *chips* is perfect for my husband who is currently losing weight and training!

-DEHYDRATOR RECIPE-

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Servings

2 bananas.. but in chips

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Ingredients

* 2 very ripe bananas

* lemon juice

* dehydrator

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Directions

* Peel the bananas. (Use only very ripe fruits!) Slice bananas into 1/4-inch chips.

* Dip each banana slice into the lemon juice. This step are helping the bananas not to become all brown.

* Drain the extra lemon juice and lay the banana slice on the dehydrator tray. Leave enough space between banana slices on the tray to allow sufficient air flow for drying.

* Put the trays into the dehydrator and set initial temperature to 150′F  and dry at that temperature for the first two hours. Turn the temperature down to 130′F. From here it will take another 7-8 hours for bananas to fully dry. Half way through turn the banana slices to make sure they will dry correctly.

* If the banana chips are leathery to crisp, they are done. Cool the banana chips for a few hours in the dehydrator before removing them. Store dried chips into plastic bags when they are fully cool. Store at room temperature.

* Enjoy!

Strawberry & Banana Ice Cream

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I’m totally ADDICTED to my ice cream maker, hahahaha! In two days I made two different kind and you know what… the bowl is still in the freezer so I can try another kind tomorrow! HAHA!

I love the texture that the banana gave to that ice cream, it’s fun and like the mango ice cream, it’s super delicious and…. HOMEMADE! Yeah!

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-ICE CREAM MAKER RECIPE-

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Servings

About 5 cups (1.25L)

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Ingredients

* 1 cup sliced strawberries

* 1 very ripe medium banana

* 3/4 cup milk (I used 3.25% milk)

* 2/3 cup sugar

* A pinch of salt

* 1 1/2 cups cream (I used 10% cream)

* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used my Mexican vanilla)

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Directions

* Before even starting the recipe, make sure your ice cream maker bowl is in the freezer, in fact it takes about 16-24 hours to be totally frozen. I put it in my huge vertical freezer and it takes about 16 hours to be rock solid.

* Put the strawberries and the banana in a food processor and pulse until you reach the texture you want (I wanted a smooth texture with some tiny pieces in it)

* In a bowl, whisk  the sugar, the milk and the salt together until all the sugar is dissolved. Stir in cream and vanilla. Add the fruit puree and mix well.

* Cover and put the bowl in the refrigerator for few hours (I left mine there for about 2-3 hours)

* Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and put it on. Calculate about 20 minutes to reach the perfect texture. (the mixture has to thickened)

* Since the ice cream will be kind of soft, if you want a more firm texture, remove the ice cream from the bowl and put it in another freezer safe container. Freeze for few hours. (This is what I did) (don’t freeze your ice cream in the ice cream maker bowl.. use another container!)

* Remove from the freezer and serve.

* Enjoy!