Tag Archives: corn

St. Patty’s Day Secret Ingredient Bread

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Cornbread is usually a recipe for health disaster with loads of butter and sugar. Ask Paula Dean what the end result of that combo is. Gasp.

So as usual I changed things up a bit.

Enter secret ingredient, I swapped avocado for butter. The avocado keeps the bread’s richness from it’s healthy fats, taking out the saturated fats and replacing with unsaturated. Plus, essential fats from avocado and Vitamin E, so good for your skin. And, there should always be a little green for St. Patrick’s Day.

The sugar was also replaced with unsweetened applesauce, agave and corn. Corn? If you ever did one of those low carb diets, then you know corn is a starchy carbohydrate (because you couldn’t eat it). Good thing those days are over!

Well carbs, especially starchy carbs, are broken down into sugars during chewing (and that’s all I will go into that). Voilà, a subtle layer of sweetness, plus a little fiber to slow the insulin spike. Also, slowing that spike is fat from the avocado and Greek yogurt, as well as protein from the yogurt and eggs.

I didn’t intend to make the flour Gluten-free, but I wanted to keep this on the healthier side and avoid white flour (no nutrients, or fiber) to pair with the cornmeal. And, whole wheat flour is great, but sometimes a little dense for baking. So, why not try brown rice flour? Brown rice  is a power house for nutrients, fiber, Vitamin E, protein, iron. Some of that is stripped as it is processed into flour, but still better than white flour…

The oven is set at a lower temperature to avoid destroying the fragile bonds of the unsaturated fats in the avocado.

Whew, so here is a moist delicious nutrient packed energy breakfast, snack, or side dish for your St. Patty’s Day weekend. Top O’ Morning to Ya! Did I say that right?  I don’t have a lick of Irish in me ;) .

Avocado Cornbread

Dry

1 Cup yellow cornmeal

3/4 Cup Brown rice flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

Wet

1 avocado

15 ounces whole kernel corn

2 Tbsp- 1/4 cup agave nectar ***

1/2 cup applesauce

2 eggs

1/2 cup almond milk

1/4 cup Greek yogurt

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 9X 12 (or 8X8 if you want thicker pieces than the pic above) baking pan.

2. Mix together dry ingredients in bowl and set aside.

3. Using a Mixer or Kitchen Aide mix avocado, eggs, Greek yogurt and almond milk until smooth. Mix in remaining wet ingredients.

4. While mixer is still going slowly pour in dry ingredients. Mix until combined.

5. Fold in corn.

6. bake for 20-25 minutes (double the time if you are using (8X8).

*** If you like a sweet corn bread definitely use the 1/4 cup of agave. 2 Tbsp will give you only a hint of sweetness.

Peeling back the Layers

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Sometimes you can’t ask for a more perfect weekend.

The sun is out. On a bike ride with your husband, you catch smiling happy people at the beach on a gorgeous day.

While riding and reflecting on good times with friends the night before, you watch your husband on his mountain bike pass a couple on their road bikes.

Say what? True story. I had to put my sneaker to the bike pedal to catch up, apologizing to the struggling couple along the way. Apparently, they downshifted twice (the wife announced to me). Whatever that means. Hey, everyone is out enjoying the weather. Life is good.

Finishing touches to an amazing day. Unwinding, while cooking a delicious dinner, with a little wine and then a movie.

Now, I have your attention.  Well, the alcohol is from Trader Joe’s thanks for asking. But, let me tell you about the dinner.

Layer 1: Carbs- Polenta cornmeal

Layer 2: Protein and Carb combo: Black Beans and Corn

Layer 3: Filling nutrients and fiber from mixed veggies

Layer 4: Antioxidants from salsa

Layer 5: Healthy Fats and protein from low fat cheese and olives

5 Layer Mexican Polenta

Ingredients

1 16 ounce tube of polenta cut into slices

30 ounces of of black beans (prewashed and cooked or canned)

10 ounces of whole kernel corn

1 onion chopped

2 peppers, chopped (your favorite- I used red and yellow)

8 ounces of sliced mushrooms

8 ounces of salsa (I used Trader Joe’s Pico de Gallo)

1/2 cup Shredded Cheese (I used Trader Joe’s lite Mexican Blend)

4 ounces black olives chopped

4 ounces chopped green chilies

2-4 garlic cloves minced (I of course used 4)

1 Lime squeezed

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tsp honey

1 Tsp Chili powder

1 Tsp Cumin

1/2 tsp Oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil, or spray 9 X 13 baking dish.

2. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, peppers, mushrooms and garlic until Onions are soft and translucent. Then stir in honey, chilies, and spices and turn heat off. Squeeze in lime juice.

3. Cover baking dish with sliced polenta (this is not perfect the whole circle in a square peg deal). Layer beans and corn evenly over polenta, then spread onion mixture over beans and corn.

4. Next layer, spread salsa over top. Then sprinkle shredded cheese mixture over top, and add olives evenly.

5. Bake until heated through, about 20 minutes.

Of course Sean found a way to make it Man Style by adding Tortilla chips and eating it as a dip…. I love when Cohabitation blends seamlessly…. makes up for those days when things just don’t go as planned…..

While cooking dinner we listened to TV on the Radio’s Critically acclaimed  Return to Cookie Mountain. So sad, the bassist passed at such a young age. It reminds you to appreciate life to the fullest….

And, the Berry Happy Bodies page on Facebook has finally made an appearance. You can Like ;) , or Follow at https://www.facebook.com/Berryhappybodies. Thanks!

This recipe is featured at Fitsugar.com!

Recipe linked up at This Chick Cooks.

 

Back to school

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Well, not me for once!! Although, I am currently enrolled in the school of life. Ha,  yes I admit that is super cheesy. ;) But for reals,  I love and live to learn. But that is another story for another day.  Has nothing to do with the fact that I wrote this post on my phone, and apparently did not save it correctly, then had to rewrite whole thing. I have now learned the correct way to save a draft.  I am now trying to recreate what I wrote earlier. Hopefully, the spark is still there…

Anyways, onto Spicy Lime Scallops yum! And, conveniently the colors of summer. A refreshing end of summer dinner with a spicy twist brought to you my handsome chief. Here is the low down on this bad boy:  low fat but high protein from the scallops, oh so good! And carbs  from rice, peas and corn. A little starchy from the corn and peas, but well worth it from the nutrients you get from both. Even though those peas are little guys, they actually bring a lot to the table (oh man it’s one of those days – another one). You will get some vitamin Bs, Iron, lil protein, potassium, fiber and vitamin c and k whew! Ok, that’s a lot of talk let’s bring out the goods:

             Spicy Lime Scallops adapted from 1000 Low fat, Salt, Sugar, Cholesterol Healthy Recipes

Ingredients:

16 large scallops

1 tbsp of olive oil

1 Tsp crushed garlic

1 tsp fresh ginger root

1 bunch of scallions, thinly sliced

finely grated rind of 1 lime

1 small fresh red chile, deseeded and very finely chopped

3 Tbsp lime juice

lime wedges

Boiled rice

Steamed corn and peas

1. Wash and dry scallops, slice in half.

2. Heat oil in skillet or wok. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 1 minute without browning. Add the scallions and keep it going for 1 minute.

3. Add the scallops and stir-fry over high heat for 4-5 minutes. Stir in the  lime rind, chile and lime juice and cook for a further minute.

4. Scoop some rice, peas and corn onto your plate. Add scallops with juices.

One change I would make with this would be to use Brown rice instead of white, but hey its about moderation right?? And we did get some fiber from the peas and corn….

A solid 8.5 by both parties.

We enjoyed a little MJ- yes that’s right I said it. Micheal Jackson was in the house with his greatest hits. Sometimes you have to live it up with a little Thriller!