Cinnamon Salted Caramel Brownies : Vegan, Gluten Free

Recipe From: BakerBettie website

Note: This is an expensive recipe. Almost all of the ingredients will come from the HyVee Health Market, and things like Almond Butter, Coconut Oil, Real Maple Syrup, and Almond Flour aren't cheap. But they are typically staples you only use a small amount of in other recipes. You use a lot of these in this recipe, but I promise it is worth it. This recipe is DELICIOUS. It is rich, so you're not tempted to eat more than one brownie at a time, so they last a while! Make it. Enjoy it. You won't regret it!

Ingredients:

for the salted caramel sauce:

• 1 cup almond butter
• 1 1/4 cup pure ("real") maple syrup
• 3/4 cup solid coconut oil
• 2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon salt

for the brownies

• 1 1/2 cups of salted caramel sauce (from above)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (i bought regular cocoa powder and it was fine)
• 2 cups sifted almond flour

Directions (prepare to get sticky):

• In a large mixing bowl, combine cocoa powder and almond flour.

• Put all ingredients for the salted caramel sauce into a food processor or high-speed blender.

• Blend on high for two minutes, scraping the sides down periodically. *DON'T SKIP ON BLENDING FOR THIS LONG.* Blending for this long will create the sticky caramel-like sauce!

• Pour 1 1/2 cups of the salted caramel sauce into the flour/cocoa mixture and stir until well combined.

• Spread the mixture evenly into a lightly oiled parchment paper-lined 8x8 pan.

• Bake at 360 degrees for 12-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. 

• Drizzle warm salted caramel sauce over the top of the brownies. 

Earlier, I poured any remaining sauce from the food processor to a measuring cup. I now put the cup into the microwave for about 15 seconds to warm it up enough to pour.

• Allow to cool in the pan.
• Enjoy!

Slow-Cooker Tortilla-Less Chicken Soup

Recipe From: Paleo Slow Cooking: Gluten Free Recipes Made Simple by Chrissy Gower

Ingredients:

• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 4 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalepeno pepper, diced (I left this out as I am a wuss when it comes to spicy foods)
• 16 ounces chicken broth
• (1) 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes w/ green chiles 
• (1) 28-ounce can enchilada sauce (I used mild, but use whatever you like for your spiciness preference!)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 cup coconut milk

Directions:

• In a medium-size pan, saute the onion, celery, and carrots in the olive oil until onions are translucent (3-5 minutes over medium heat)
• Place sauteed veggies in the slow cooker
• Rinse & trim the chicken breast (if necessary) and add to the slow cooker.
• Add remaining ingredients, stir, cover, and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Notes:

I cooked for 9 hours and found it was perfect.

I added shredded mozzarella cheese to my servings as I'm kind of a wimp with spiciness! 

Also a fun add-in: crunched up pieces off HyVee Brand Black Bean & Quinoa tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Clean "Ranch" Dressing

Recipe From: Delilah
This is perfect to dip veggies in!

Ingredients:

• 1 container Chobani Greek yogurt, plain flavor
• Garlic powder, salt, pepper, parsley to taste

Directions:

• Scoop the yogurt into a small tupperware container.
• Stir in the seasonings. 

It's that easy!

Just make sure you SLOWLY add in the seasonings and taste as you go. The first time I made this, I put in WAY too much garlic and had to scrap the whole thing. But, once you perfect it, it tastes just like ranch without all the bad stuff!

Enjoy!

Stuffed Bell Peppers w/ Quinoa & Cheese

Recipe From: Robin Takes 5 Cookbook - adjusted by replacing goat cheese with mozzarella, and replacing rice with quinoa.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz lean ground beef (I used a whole lb.. I bought huge peppers. This makes four)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 tsp onion and herb seasoning (salt-free) (I used Mrs. Dash) - I also used more than 2 teaspoons since I used more meat - eyeball it.
• 1 cup cooked quinoa (follow directions on box to cook) (get pre-washed quinoa in the HyVee Health Market)
• 1/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (again, I used more)
• 4 large bell peppers (red, orange, whatever you like)

Directions:

Note: Cook the quinoa first!! It takes about 15 minutes so get this out of the way first.

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Heat oil in skillet at med-high heat, cook beef and break-up as it cooks. 
• Add seasoning and stir in to coat meat.
• Stir in the quinoa and cheese, cook until the cheese melts. Remove from heat.
• Cut off the stem from the peppers and remove the seeds (rinsing them out usually does this just fine). 
• Spoon the beef mixture into the peppers and arrange onto a pan (layered with parchment paper of course!) 
• Cover with foil and bake for 20 mins. 
• Uncover and bake another 10 ins until the peppers are tender.

Enjoy!

This was some leftovers, re-heated. I just sprinkled some extra cheese on before microwaving!

Lettuce Wraps w/ Grilled Steak & Cheese

Recipe From: Robin Takes 5 Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 lbs flank steak
• 1 head of iceberg lettuce - leaves separated
• 1/2 cup sliced red onion 
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil

Directions:

• Heat coconut oil into a skillet on medium-high heat.
• Season both sides of the steak with salt & pepper and place in pan.
• The recipe said to cook on each side 3-5 mins for medium to medium-rare. I ended up cooking it lots longer, flipping every 4 mins or so. I was cooking for my parents, who prefer more well-done, so that was part of it, but it also just was looking bloody for a LONG time. so just cut into it and check it as you go.
• Cut against the grain into 1/4-inch thick slices
• Arrange the lettuce leaves and serve buffet style with toppings (onion, cheese, tomato)

Enjoy!

We enjoyed these with Stuffed Peppers as well.

Zucchini Bruschetta

Recipe From: My Mom/Online?
When my mom gave me this recipe, it didn't have a title. I decided Zucchini Bruschetta was appropriate based on the ingredients!

Ingredients:

• 1 large zucchini
• 1 tomato, sliced
• Shaved parmesan cheese or shredded mozzarella cheese (I used a mixture of both!)
• Olive oil
• Garlic powder
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Slice the zucchini in half. Slice off part of the underside if necessary to keep stable.
• Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder.
• Top with slices of tomato, salt & pepper to taste.
• Top with cheese mixture.
• Line pan with parchment paper. 
• Place zucchini halves in pan.
• Bake for 20-30 minutes (I would even do 40 minutes if the zucchini is very large/thick to ensure it's cooked all the way through)

Enjoy!

Melt In Your Mouth Chicken

Recipe From: My Mom provided this one for me, however I've seen it shared on Facebook from various sources, so I apologize for not knowing who actually invented it. If you know, please tell me so I can give credit!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp seasoning salt (I used Mrs. Dash)
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions:

Line a glass baking pan with parchment paper. Spread the mixture over 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-45 minutes. *check temp* 

Note: Next time I make this, I plan to make a slice in the chicken breasts length-wise, and spreading some of the mixture inside the breasts as well to add to the overall moisture of the end product and to enhance the flavor. 

Enjoy!

Pictured here with a side of baby carrots and Zucchini Noodles