A Pursuit of Healthy

Need a quick run-out-the-door kind of breakfast? Make these! Being in graduate school full-time this semester has been a whirlwind I feel like I'm constantly doing about 40 things at once. There's always an exam (or 2 or 3) to study for, a group project (or 2 or 3) to work on, multiple research studies to read and write papers on, and then trying to have a somewhat normal life on top of it. Cooking has kind of gone by the wayside lately, which I hate because my kitchen is my happy place! So when I've had a chance to actually cook lately, they've been quick, simple recipes like this one.


 Have you noticed I love bananas?! Well I do! We almost always have a bunch of bananas on our counter. They're easy to grab and eat in the car on my way to class (yep that's my life lately). Inevitably, I lose track of how ripe my bananas are and they get WAY to ripe to eat raw. I usually make banana bread, but I thought muffins would be good this time. These are delicious! And I made them with whole wheat flour and oats to get more fiber in them. Try them, I know you'll love them!

 Oatmeal Banana Muffins

Prep Time: 10 min. | Total Time: 30 min. | Makes ~16 Muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (you can use all-purpose too)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk when using honey (3/4 cup when using sugar)
1/3 cup oil
1/2 cup honey or sugar
2-3 mashed overripe bananas

Preparation Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, stir together oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix bananas, egg, milk, oil, and honey or sugar. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Don't over-mix. Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Enjoy!



Oh and don't use muffin papers or liners, just spray the muffin tin really well with nonstick spray. If you use paper, you'll never get the muffin out of it! 
 

I may have eaten 2 while taking these pictures...oops!!

I love fish. Basically all kinds, in all forms. I'm a super un-picky person. During my "12 Week Transformation" I ate a TON of salmon and tilapia. After eating either of those options almost nightly for 12 weeks, you get a little sick of fish and need to find new ways to cook them. I found this recipe during that time and it's become one of my nightly go-to meals. It's super quick and easy and really good. Sorry, my pictures aren't fabulous...but really does tilapia photograph well? You be the judge.

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Total: 20 minutes | Serves 4

Ingredients:
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. paprika
1 tbsp. chopped parsley (or 1/2 tbsp. dried)
1 tbsp. olive oil (or even spraying the fish with cooking spray would work just fine)
4 tilapia fillets (about 4 oz each)
Lemon, cut into wedges

Preparation Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Absolutely don't skip this step. I don't know about you, but I hate hand-washing dishes and my baking pans don't always fit in my dishwasher. Lining my baking sheets with foil makes for super easy clean up! Just throw away the foil, and done!

In a shallow bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, paprika, and parsley. Drizzle the tilapia fillets with the olive oil, then dredge in the cheese mixture, pressing it in lightly with your fingers if necessary. Transfer to the baking sheet.

Bake until the fish is opaque or flakes easily with a fork in the thickest part (that's how I always test it), about 10-12 minutes. Serve with the lemon slices. I eat mine with a bunch of steamed veggies and sometimes brown rice. Enjoy!

Hi everyone! Long time no see! I'm really sorry for being MIA the past couple of weeks. News flash: grad school takes a lot of your time! Who knew?! I am now about 6 weeks in to my first semester of graduate school and I absolutely love it...my teachers, classmates, classes...it's all been great. I've learned SOOO much and it makes me excited to eventually have the career in wellness and nutrition that I've always wanted. But it is very time-consuming. I study ALL the time! I haven't had as much time to cook as I'd like, so if my posts are sporadic I apologize and just stick with me please!


That all being said, I'm sharing a not-so-nutritious recipe with you today! I feel bad for not posting for so long AND today is National Homemade Cookie Day! Who knew such a thing existed. Like everybody, I love chocolate chip cookies. My favorites are oatmeal chocolate chip but my husband is more of a purist. I've always used the chocolate chip cookie recipe on the Nestle Tollhouse wrapper, just like Phoebe Buffay (if you don't know what I'm talking about, 1. shame on you! and 2. go watch Friends!) but I found this recipe on one of my favorite baking websites and it is now my go to! They're perfectly soft and amazing! My husband is not a crunchy cookie guy, so these were perfect for him. The secret? Cornstarch! Yea, something about the cornstarch (it's science-y and I won't bore you with it) keep the cookies soft and perfect! I hope you take some time to bake today, it makes the whole day better, well for me at least! Enjoy these amazing cookies and let me know what you think!!

THE Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes: ~2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation Instructions:
In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed until completely smooth and creamy. Important step! Be sure to do that for the full minute! Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and mix on medium speed until fluffy and light in color. Mix in egg and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. On low speed, slowly mix to the wet ingredients until combined. The cookie dough will be quite thick. Add the chocolate chips and mix for about 5 seconds until evenly mixed. Cover dough tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour, and even up to 2 days. Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough!!

Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. Once chilled, the dough will be slightly crumbly, but roll the dough into approximately 1 tbsp amount individuals balls with your hands. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges. They will look really soft and not completely done when you remove them from the oven, this is how they're supposed to be! All the cookies to cool for about 5 minutes while still on the cookie sheet. Then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

 Keep the cookies in a covered container for about a week. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months, or freeze the uncooked dough balls...although I don't know how anyone would have the will power to just make the dough to freeze and not bake a couple. You are stronger than I!

Recipe adapted from here!