Tag Archives: healthy

Banana Cake with Vanilla Frosting

Posted by lifecorked in Sobriety and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

BC Closeup

Okay, I’m warning you, this cake is addictive! If you like banana bread, you will LOVE this. My inspiration for this cake came from Pinterest, however, I added my own little twist on it and I think it turned out great. Not only is it yummy, but it’s semi-healthy. Well, as healthy as cake can be for you, but whatever! It past the taste test with both my husband and daughter, so I’ll take that as a good sign! Oh, and it’s SUPER easy, which makes it even better!

The original recipe didn’t call for walnuts or ground flax, but in an effort to make it a bit healthier, I decided to add them and was thrilled with the results. I also substituted light sour cream for regular sour cream. Luckily, I had all the ingredients on hand so that made it easy to modify. The original recipe called for homemade vanilla frosting, however, I happened to have a jar of Betty Crocker vanilla frosting on hand so I decided to use that instead. I know, store bought frosting? Gasp! Hey, I say whatever works for you, do it! To top it off, I sprinkled a dash of cinnamon on each piece of cake before I served it. It looks pretty and adds a fun flavor!

Okay, here’s what you’ll need:

2/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup light sour cream

1 egg

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2 mashed super ripe bananas

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

2 tablespoons ground flax

Directions (easily mixed by hand):

Preheat oven to 350F if using glass or 375F if using a non-stick or coated pan. Cream together sugar, sour cream, egg and 2 tablespoons softened butter. Add mashed bananas and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.  Add flour, salt, baking soda and ground flax; mix well. Add walnuts; mix. Pour into greased 8×8 pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool completely before frosting.

If you’re like me you can grab that jar of frosting sitting on the shelf, or you can make an easy buttercream or cream cheese frosting. Either would be great!

Enjoy!

“Easy Peasy” Chicken Enchiladas (As My Son Would Say!)

Posted by lifecorked in Sobriety and tagged with , , , , , ,

Chicken Enchilada Closeup

I truly do enjoy cooking, however, I have a few rules. 1) The recipe must be less than 10 steps, 2) It must include ingredients I can pronounce (most of the time!) and 3) It must taste good. Okay, so I’m sure everyone would agree with the third “rule,” but, still, it’s important!

With that being said, one of my favorite go-to “easy peasy” recipes is chicken enchiladas. The great thing about this recipe is you can modify it to your taste. Mild, spicy, onions, no onions – whatever! I’m going to show you how I make it, but remember, it’s not written in stone.

Here’s what you’ll need:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 8 oz package shredded Mexican cheese

1 large can diced black olives

1 large can diced mild green chiles

1 large can mild green enchilada sauce (you could use red, but I like green)

1 package shredded lettuce or mixed greens

2 avocados, diced

2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced

Light sour cream

6 soft taco size flour tortillas (you could use whole wheat too)

Spray cooking oil

Salt and pepper

13 x 9 baking pan

1) Pre-heat oven to 350.

2) Heat a pan over medium/high heat and spray with oil. Add chicken, bell pepper and onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook until chicken is browned and no longer pink, stirring every few minutes. Set aside.

Enchilada Cooking

3) Set aside 1/2 cup of shredded cheese to top enchiladas.

4) Spray baking pan. Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture, olives, green chiles and shredded cheese. Make sure you have enough to divide among all six tortillas. After you fill each tortilla, roll it and place it seam side down in the baking dish.

5) Poor enchilada sauce over the tortillas. Top with remaining shredded cheese. Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 min.

Enchilada Pan

6) Serve each enchilada topped with lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and sour cream. I like to add a little hot sauce too!

Serves 4-6 people

Prep time: 30 minutes

Enjoy!