Healthy Banana Applesauce Muffins

Source:https://www.inthekidskitchen.com/banana-applesauce-muffins/#mv-creation-115-jtr

(I personally thought these were bland but my kids said they liked them okay.)

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
2 cups very ripe bananas (4-5 bananas)
1/2 cup applesauce
2 eggs
1/3 cup honey
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 12-count muffin tin.
In a large bowl, combine the bananas, applesauce, eggs and honey, using an electric mixer.
In a small bowl, combine the coconut oil and vanilla extract. Blend this into the banana mixture.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add flour mixture to the banana mixture and mix until just combined and no dry patches of flour remain.
Portion 1/4 cup of batter into the prepared muffin pan, about 2/3 of the way full.
Bake for 18-22 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Easy Calzone Recipe

Source: https://natashaskitchen.com/easy-calzone-recipe/

Servings: 8 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients
• 2 lb pizza dough (see recipe below)
• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1 cup pepperoni
• • 2 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1 cup ricotta cheese (I used cottage cheese)
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 475 °F. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or spray it with oil.
Divide the dough into 8 equally sized pieces. Roll each piece into a 1/4" thick circle.
Place the filling on half of each circle (pizza sauce, ricotta, pepperoni, and shredded mozzarella). Make sure to leave the edges clean to allow for sealing the calzone. Fold the side over the filling and crimp the edges.
Place calzones on a baking sheet, leaving space apart. Cut a small vent on the top of each calzone. Brush the tops with oil and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Overnight Pizza Dough Recipe
Servings: 8 people (makes 2, 10-12 inch crusts)
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 day
Total Time: 1 day 10minutes

Ingredients
• 1 1/4 cups warm water, 105-110˚F
• 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 tsp honey
• 1/2 Tbsp fine sea salt
• 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, (measured correctly) plus more to dust*

Instructions
How to Make Pizza Dough:
In a small bowl, stir together water, honey, and salt then sprinkle the top with 1/2 tsp yeast and let sit 5 minutes then stir.
Measure 3 1/3 cups flour in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Pour yeast mixture into the center then stir with a firm spatula until the dough comes together. Knead by hand 2 minutes (dough will be sticky). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature 4-5 hours or until doubled in size.
Transfer dough to a floured surface, turn to coat lightly in flour so it isn’t sticky then divide in half. Fold each piece of dough in half 8 times, gently pulling the sides over the center like closing a book, turning the dough each time and repeating for 8 folds. Form a ball in your hands and transfer each piece of dough to a lightly oiled bowl seam-side-down, cover and refrigerate overnight (18 hours) or up to 1 week.
**I don't think putting it in the fridge made it rise much more than it had already risen, so I'd try using it after the first rise.
Remov the dough from the fridge 1 hour before using to give it time to warm up.

Delicious Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins

Delicious Cottage Cheese Blueberry Muffins
Source: https://simplyyummyeats.com/healthy-cottage-cheese-blueberry-muffins-recipe/
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup honey or maple syrup or liquid stevia (I used a mix of honey and solid sugar substitute) 

• ¼ cup vegetable oil or unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a muffin tin with paper liners or lightly grease the cups.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cottage cheese, eggs, honey, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Stir everything together until it’s well mixed and smooth.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make sure these dry ingredients are well combined to ensure your muffins rise properly.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Stir gently until just combined—be careful not to overmix, as this can make your muffins tough! 5. Gently add the blueberries to the batter, taking care not to crush them.
6. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling each about two-thirds full.
7. 7. Bake for 20-25 minutes. They’re done when they’re golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
8. Once baked, let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes. Then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Alice and Kyle LOVED these! Rachel and Zed didn't like the blueberry part.

Easy Winter Fresh Fruit Salad

**DOUBLE IT IF YOU'RE MAKING IT FOR A FUNERAL! 

Source: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/winter-fresh-fruit-salad/

Yield: 6 Servings 

Prep Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 20 mins 

Ingredients

 *Fruit is adaptable; see note below* 

1 cup fresh blueberries 

1 cup peeled and diced kiwi fruit 

1 cup mandarin oranges, drained, or fresh mandarin/navel orange segments 

1 cup diced apples or pears 

1 cup halved grapes 

½ cup pomegranate seeds 

1 tablespoon honey 

2 tablespoons orange juice, see note for lemon variation 

Light pinch of cinnamon 

Directions 

Place the fruit in a serving bowl. (If using pears, because they sometimes darken faster than apples, I like to toss them with a light squeeze of lemon juice before adding to the salad.) 

Whisk together the dressing ingredients and pour over the fruit and toss to combine. 

The fruit salad can be made a couple hours ahead of time – keep in mind that depending on what type of fruit is used, the colors may seep into each other as the salad sits. 

Notes 

Fruit: as noted above, the fruit is very adaptable to what is in season and what you prefer. You’ll want about 5-6 cups total fruit (not including the pomegranate seeds). (My note on her note: I've done it as she suggested; I've also done it with strawberries, grapes, oranges, and apples. Kiwi is NOT cheap..and the second time I got some, it wasn't even ripe so I couldn't use it.)

Dressing: my favorite way to make the dressing is to use 1 tablespoon orange juice and 1 tablespoon lemon juice (both freshly squeezed, if you can, especially the lemon juice). I love the tangy freshness from the lemon. But if you want it a bit sweeter and not as tangy, use all orange juice. Cinnamon: you want a very light pinch of cinnamon – less than 1/8 teaspoon. It adds something so special to this salad and the small amount doesn’t overpower the flavor.

Sweet Potato-Peanut Butter Muffins

Flourless Sweet Potato Peanut Butter Muffins

Source: https://thenaturalnurturer.com/one-bowl-peanut-butter-sweet-potato-muffins/
Yield: 10
Prep Time: 5minutes
Cook Time: 18minutes
Total Time: 23minutes

Ingredients
1 cup smooth unsweetened peanut butter
(I just used regular PB) 1/2 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato
3 eggs
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger

Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a muffin tin.
Combine all ingredients in a food processor or bowl. Mix until smooth and all ingredients are incorporated evenly.
Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, portion batter out between lined muffin tin holes.
Bake for 16-18 minutes or until the muffins have an internal temperature of 200℉
Let cool for 15-20 minutes and then enjoy! Store leftovers in fridge for up to a week or in freezer!

Notes
You can also sub the sweet potato with pumpkin or butternut squash! Still veggie-loaded. Still delicious!

Buttery Soft Pretzels

Buttery Soft Pretzels 

Prep Time: 3 hours

Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours, 12 minutes

Ingredients 

1 pkg. Active yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1 cup warm water
¼ cup honey
3 cups bread flour
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
Water
3 tablespoons baking soda
1 egg
6 tablespoons butter
coarse salt

Instructions
In a small bowl, mix together yeast and warm water. Let start to work and activate for 10 minutes. Stir in honey.
In a large mixing bowl, add flour and salt. Stir in activated yeast mixture. Using a dough hook, knead for about5-6 minutes.
Place dough in a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1½ hours. After it has doubled in size, punch the dough and let rise again for 45 minutes.
Heat oven to 450 degrees.
Pour 6 cups of water into the 12-inch skillet and add baking soda. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Divide the dough into 6 or 8 pieces, depending on how large you want your pretzels to be. Roll each piece into a 20 inch long rope; shape each rope into a pretzel shape.
Using a slotted spoon, gently place the pretzels into the boiling water for 45 seconds. Remove the pretzels with a slotted spoon and drain well. Place onto the silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet.
In a small bowl, beat the egg to make an egg wash. Brush egg wash ove pretzels. Sprinkle with coarse salt.
Bake for 11-15 minutes, or until the pretzels are golden brown.