Pure Hummus

Add PURE Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate for a big boost of protein – 1/2 cup PURE adds 40 grams clean protein and won’t change the flavor or texture of your delicious hummus.

 Pure Hummus

• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, about 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup tahini, sesame paste (or use natural peanut butter as a non-traditional substitute)
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• One, 16-ounce can chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 cup PURE Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Paprika

Add the lemon juice and tahini to the food processor and process until thick and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides, add the garlic, salt and cumin – process an additional 1 minute.

Add 1/2 of the chickpeas to the mixture in food processor and process until very smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down sides; add the remaining chickpeas and the PURE – process until silky smooth – adding 2 to 3 tablespoons warm water, a little at a time, to bring hummus to the desired consistency.

Scrape into a bowl, make a shallow well in the center, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with paprika.

SWEET RICOTTA & BERRY PIE

Sweet Ricotta and Berry Pie

Prep time:  10 mins

Cook time:  30 mins

Total time:  40 mins

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• ⅓ cup Truvia or ⅔ cup Splenda Granulated
• ½ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• One, 15 ounce container POLLY-O original or part skim ricotta cheese (NO fat free as gums and starches turn the dish grainy)
• ½ cup fresh blackberries, raspberries or blueberries

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Using the blender, pulse the eggs, Truvia, milk, vanilla and ricotta until smooth. Pour filling into glass or ceramic pie plate that has been coated with vegetable non stick spray. Drop the berries decoratively into the custard.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is slightly puffed at the edges, barely golden and just set - meaning it should be slightly jiggly in the center when you gently move the pie plate from side to side - a little soft in the center is desired. Remember that it is a custard and doesn't hard set as a cake would.
4. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
5. DO NOT OVERBAKE.

This was a hit with my husband and some of his men from his life group. Best part it was sugar free and no bad carbs! Life style change recipe…

OOPSIE BREAD OR CLOUD BREAD

Oopsie Bread or Cloud Bread

3 eggs, separated
3 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with vegetable cooking spray or line with parchment.

In a large bowl, whip the egg whites until very stiff peaks form. Set aside.Using the same beaters, blend the cream cheese with the egg yolks salt and baking powder until smooth.

Fold about half of the whites into the yolk mixture to lighten. Fold in the remaining whites until just the large streaks of white disappear. Mound into flattened rounds of desired sizes on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes – depending on size. They should be a golden and crisp to the touch.

Cool for a few minutes on the pan. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container or plastic bag.

SKINNY ORANGE CHICKEN

Skinny Orange Chicken

Prep time:  10 mins

Cook time:  20 mins

Total time:  30 mins

Ingredients

Orange Sauce

• ½ cup Smucker's Sugar Free Orange Preserves (now that's unexpected!)
• Zest and juice of one large orange (about ⅓ cup juice)
• ¼ cup chicken broth (Swanson Natural Goodness is best)
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons Sriracha or ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Stir Fry

• 1 pound boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, thinly sliced and cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon peanut or vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Whisk together the preserves, orange zest & juice, broth, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and Sriracha in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Heat the peanut oil in a non stick skillet or wok. Season the chicken with salt and black pepper and toss with the cornstarch. Stir fry until browned and nearly cooked through. Add the orange sauce and stir to combine scraping up the browned bits from pan bottom. Let the sauce come to a boil, and cook for until thickened, 60 to 90 seconds.
3. Serve with fresh broccoli - cut off florets and steam in 1 inch water with ½ teaspoon salt in covered pot until tender when stem is poked with sharp knife tip. Drain very well on paper towels.

EGG 'CREPE' WITH RICOTTA & SALSA

Egg 'Crepe' with Ricotta & Salsa

Ingredients

• 1 large egg
• salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• ¼ cup part skim ricotta
• ¼ cup of your favorite salsa

Instructions

1. Scramble egg with pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper
2. Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a small nonstick pan over medium high heat
3. Pour into hot pan and swirl as it covers the bottom as a crepe
4. Cook until egg is set and carefully flip
5. Add small spoonfuls of ricotta in a line across your 'crepe' and roll up
6. Remove to plate
7. Add salsa to pan to sizzle and warm before spooning over egg

CHICKEN PIZZA

Bariatric Pizza. You've gotta taste it!

Pizza pie tops a flavorful crust of ground seasoned chicken with your favorite pizza toppings! It's simple, it's delish, it's exciting.

Ingredients

• One pound ground (raw) chicken breast - or 3 small boneless breasts, pulsed in food processor
• ½ cup grated Parmesan
• 1 cup freshly shredded part skim mozzarella - one cup shredded cheese is 4 ounces by weight
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Dried oregano
• ½ cup prepared pasta sauce
• Crushed red pepper flakes
• 4 or 5 basil leaves, rolled and sliced
• Toppings - lets not go crazy with fat - I used Molinari very lean pepperoni in paper thin slices

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet or pizza pan with parchment paper or foil sprayed with non stick vegetable cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl combine the ground chicken with ¼ cup parmesan, ¼ cup mozzarella, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and ½ teaspoon oregano.
3. Mound the chicken mixture onto the parchment and pat into flat rectangle or disc. Cover with plastic wrap and evenly press or roll the chicken into a 7x10" rectangle or round. I use a rolling pin to get it very thin. Remove the plastic wrap and roast until golden, 12 to 15 minutes.
4. Smear crust with sauce, scatter with ¼ cup Parmesan, ¾ cup mozzarella, layer with toppings and season with a sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes and ¼ teaspoon oregano.
5. Pop back into hot oven and cook until melted and bubbly 6 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and scatter with chopped basil.

MAGIC CAKE

magic cake

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

60 mins

Total time

1 hour 15 mins

serves 9

ingredients

• 4 eggs (separate yolks from whites) at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 150 g (3/4 cup) sugar
• 125 g (1 stick or ½ cup) butter, melted
• 115 g (4 oz or ¾ cup) of all purpose flour
• 500 ml (2 cups) milk lukewarm
• powdered sugar for dusting cake

instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 F degrees. Grease a 8 inch x 8 inch baking dish.
2. Separate eggs and add the egg whites to a mixer and mix until egg whites are stiff. Place egg whites in a bowl and set aside.
3. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light. Add butter and vanilla extract and continue beating for another minute or two after which you can add the flour and mix it in until fully incorporated.
4. Slowly start adding the milk and beat until everything is well mixed together. Add the egg whites, a third at a time and gently fold them in using a spatula, repeat until all egg whites are folded in. Another variation to folding in the egg whites would be to add a third of the egg whites and gently whisk them in to the cake batter, then reverse the process and add a bit of the cake mixture to the egg whites and gently whisk in, repeat until all cake batter has been whisked in.
5. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 40 to 70 minutes or until the top is lightly golden. The baking time could vary greatly depending on the oven, so take a peek at around 40 minutes and see how it looks.
6. Sprinkle some powdered sugar after cake has cooled.

nutrition information

Calories: 267 Fat: 14.5 g Carbohydrates: 29.5 g Sugar: 19.5 g Protein: 5.8 g Cholesterol: 107 mg

EASY CHEESY RANCH CHICKEN

Easy Cheesy Ranch Chicken

prep time: 10 min. cook time 35 min. total time 45 min. serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 6-8 small-medium size chicken breasts (thawed)
• 1½ cups ranch dressing
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup Cheddar cheese
• 1 packet ranch dressing mix

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cover cookie sheet with aluminum foil.
3. Poor ranch dressing into a medium sized bowl, and set aside.
4. In a separate bowl, combine Parmesan cheese, Cheddar cheese, and the packet of ranch dressing mix.
5. Mix until well combined.
6. Dip thawed chicken breasts into the bowl of ranch and place on the covered cookie sheet.
7. Sprinkle the top of the chicken breast with the cheese and ranch seasoning mixture, until you can't see the chicken breast.
8. Place the ranch and cheese covered chicken breasts into the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
9. Sprinkle with extra Cheddar and Parmesan cheese when it is freshly out of the oven (our family really likes cheese)

MILLION DOLLAR SPAGHETTI

Million Dollar Spaghetti

1 lb. ground beef
1 jar of spaghetti sauce
8 oz. cream cheese
1/4 c. sour cream
1/2 lb. cottage cheese (equals 1 c.)
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
1pkg. spaghetti (16oz.)
grated cheddar cheese

Instructions:
1. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Boil your spaghetti noodles al dente (firm) Drain and set aside unit ready to assemble.
2. Combine the cream cheese, sour cream and cottage cheese until well blended.
3. Brown your hamburger and when done, drain well. Combine the hamburger with your spaghetti sauce.
4. Put a few sides of butter into a 9x13 pan then pour half of your spaghetti noodles on top.
5. Take your cream cheese mixture and pour on top of the noodles. Spread well over noodles.
6. Pour the rest of the noodles on top of the cream cheese mixture. Put a few more slices of butter on top of the noodles.
7. Pour your spaghetti and meat sauce on top of your noodles.
8. Now it is ready to put into the oven for 30 min. After 30 min. pour the desired amount of cheese on top and return to the oven for 15 minutes to allow cheese to melt.

When all else fails - make spaghetti
BUT NOT ORDINARY SPAGHETTI…

MILLION DOLLAR SPAGHETTI!

MY MOTHERS ZUCCHINI BREAD

My Mothers Zucchini Bread

Ingredients

2/3 c. oil


2 eggs


2/3 c. white sugar


2/3 c. brown sugar


1 1/3 c. grated raw zucchini


1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla


2 c. flour


1/2 tsp. salt


1/2 tsp. baking soda


1/4 tsp. baking powder


1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon


2/3 c. chopped pecans

Directions:

Mix together ingredients above from flour on down.

Beat eggs until foamy.

Add sugar, oil, zucchini and vanilla.

Mix lightly, but well.

Add dry ingredients to liquid mix, stir well then add nuts.

Bake at 350 for about one hour.

Enjoy!

BEST BANANA BREAD

Best Banana Bread

Ingredients:

1 ½ c melted butter

1 ¾ c. brown sugar

4 eggs

2 ½ tsp. vanilla extract & 2 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. baking soda

4 c. flour

3 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. nutmeg

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

grated rind from one orange

2 c. mashed ripe bananas soaked in 1 c. strong black coffee

1 c. raisins and chopped nuts

Directions:

In a bowl, mix together the mashed bananas and coffee. In a separate bowl, mix the butter and sugar. Then add the eggs one at a time. Then add in the vanilla, almond extract, salt and baking soda. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, and orange rind. Then add flour mixture and banana mixture (including all the coffee) alternately to butter mixture. Mix gently. Then add nuts and raisins. Grease two loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes.