Crockpot Chili & 30 Minute Cornbread

There's nothing more satisfying than a bowl of homecooked chili and cornbread on a chilly fall night. Or maybe on a Sunday while you watch your favorite football team. Either way, it's a simple fact that it's one of those feel good meals! And now you don't have to feel guilty for eating it! 

What's even better, you can throw all the ingredients into the crockpot in the morning, and when you come home, dinner is ready! Or throw it all in Sunday morning, and meal prep is done for the week, all you have to do is divvi it out! 

So now that I have got you dreaming about a perfect fall mean on a chilly fall evening, why don't I give you the recipes...

Crockpot Chili 

(Serves 8-10)

Ingredients:

2 cups low sodium vegetable broth

1 can diced tomatoes with juice 

1 can no salt added tomato sauce

1 4oz can diced green chiles

2 15oz cans of no salt added kidney beans drained and rinsed

1 15oz cans of no salt added cannellini beans drained and rinsed

1 green pepper diced

1 yellow onion diced

2 TBLSP and 1 tsp chili powder

1 TBLSP Italian seasoning

1 tsp hot sauce

Salt and pepper to taste 

Optional: 1 pound lean ground turkey 

Method:

1. If using ground turkey, brown it in a frying pan, then add to crockpot. 

2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the crockpot and stir well.

3. Cook on low for 6 hours.

Cornbread

(Makes one 9x9 pan worth)

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 cup cornmeal (try to use organic)

1 TBLSP baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs or 6 TBLSP egg whites**

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk 

1 TBLSP apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup honey or maple syrup

 

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a 9x9 baking pan with a little bit of coconut oil.

2. Combine the almond milk and apple cider vinegar and let it sit for 10 minutes.

3. Combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

4. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, honey, oil, and milk. Stir well.

5. Pour the wet mixture into the dry into the dry mixture and combine quickly, no more than 15 seconds. THE BATTER SHOULD LOOK LUMPY! Make sure you do not overmix the batter! 

6. Pour the batter into the pan and get it in the oven as soon as possible.

7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.

**Note: for Vegan alternative use 2 flax eggs (1 flax egg = 3 TBLSP ground flax and 1 TBLSP water. Let it sit in the fridge for 10 minutes. Do this step when you do step 2!) 

#eatyourheartout

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding!

I know what you're thinking, there's no way pudding can be healthy! But there's a new pudding in town that is an energizing pick me up! That's right, chia seed pudding! 

Today I am featuring chocolate chia seed pudding as I have had a craving for chocolate lately, but if you don't like chocolate, the recipe is really easy to change! 

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

(Serves 2)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/4 cup chia seeds

2 TBLSP Cocoa

1 1/2 TBLSP pure maple syrup

Method:

1. Pour chia seeds, almond milk, cocoa, and maple syrup into a mason jar.

2. Close the lid and make sure it's secure, then shake the mason jar to mix all the ingredients up. 

3. Put it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, but overnight is best! 

Serve with some unsweetened shredded coconut and almonds, and enjoy! 

100, 150, or 200 miles by Christmas!

It's time to pick your poison! Summer bodies are made in winter! Choose which mileage you want to do, print it out, and cross your miles off daily as you get closer to achieving your goals! 

Log miles by running, jogging, walking, biking, or swimming! 

Every 3 miles you bike is worth 1 mile!

Every 1 mile you swim is worth 3 miles!

The rest are 1 mile for 1 mile!

There are 54 days until Christmas, which means:

100 miles by Christmas = 1.85 miles a day

150 miles by Christmas = 2.77 miles a day

200 miles by Christmas = 3.70 miles a day 

Let's do this!!! 

Hashtag on IG & FB #200bychristmas #150bychristmas or #100bychristmas, #afkah and tag me @tinafichera so I can see your progress! 

Healthy Thanksgiving Side Dishes: Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice

In honor of Thanksgiving coming up, I have decided to post a side dish a week that is a healthier take on what you might normally have on Thanksgiving!

Why am I doing this? After the holiday season is over, I always here everyone complaining about how they have gained so much weight. How much they have eaten out, all the cookies, candy, glutinous feasts they've partaken in, etc. so instead of setting yourself up for the same cycle of pain that you go through every year, why not try to make it better on yourself and keep it healthier? 

Also, there are a lot of gluten free and dairy free eaters nowadays, so to be respectful to them, it's always nice to incorporate something they can eat into the feast as well. 

So today's feature is Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice. I bought the Marsala wine at Trader Joes, but you can buy it at any grocery store. You can also by presliced mushrooms to cut down the prep time. What is nice about this dish is you can make it ahead of time and reheat it easily. One less thing to cook that day! Alright, so here it goes!

Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice

(Makes 6-8 Servings)

Ingredients:

1 cup wild rice 

3 cups water or stock

1 package sliced mushrooms

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup diced onion 

1 TBLSP minced garlic

2 TBLSP cornstarch 

1/2 cup Marsala

1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. In a pot, combine rice and water/stock and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 40-45 minutes.

2. Fluff the rice with the fork and continue to simmer for 5 more minutes. Drain any excess water. Cover to keep the rice warm.

3. In a large pan, heat 2 TBLSP of olive oil, and add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms until tender. 

4. Add the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and stir until it's combined.

5. Deglaze the pan by adding the Marsala wine, and stir, getting everything off the pan.

6. Next add the chicken or vegetable stock, and cook until the mixture thickens to a gravy looking sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.

7. Stir the sauce into the rice and serve. 

To reheat, put the rice in a covered pot and cook on low, stirring frequently. 

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice... Pumpkin Spice Donuts!

Fall is here, Halloween is tomorrow, and pumpkin spice is in the air! 

Why not surprise your loved ones with fresh pumpkin spice donuts tomorrow morning to set the holiday cheer?

Pumpkin Spice Donuts

(Makes 8 Donuts)

Ingredients:

1 cup flour (I used white spelt flour)

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp pumpkin spice + 1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

1/3 cup canned pure pumpkin

1/3 cup brown sugar or maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg or 3 TBLSP egg whites

1/3 cup almond milk (or other milk) + 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp coconut oil 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine the almond milk and ACV and let it sit for 10 minutes.

3. In a large bowl combine the flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together.

4. In a separate bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients including the almond milk mixture and stir well.

5. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until all is combined.

6. Pour into donut molds, muffin tins would work too! 

7. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

8. Let them cool on a cooling rack or plate for a few minutes, then drizzle with honey.

Enjoy!

Raspberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Tea time anyone?! Remember that amazing raspberry chia seed jam I posted the other day? Well say hello to its best friend; the cookie to its jam, the raspberry jam thumbprint cookie!

With oats, almond extract, coconut, and of course jam, these cookies are the perfect little (okay, they're kind of big) treat! Tea time has never been better!

Raspberry Chia Seed  Jam Thumprint Cookies

(Makes 12 rather large cookies)

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup flour (I used spelt flour)

1 cup quick oats

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 TBLSP egg whites or 1 egg

1/4 cup honey or pure maple syrup

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract  

1/2 cup natural applesauce

2 TBLSP coconut oil

Unsweetened shredded coconut for rolling

Raspberry chia seed jam for topping*

Method:

1. In a food processor or blender, pulse the oats a few times.

2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, flour, baking soda, and salt together.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar and eggs together until creamed. Next add in the rest of the wet ingredients besides the jam, and stir well.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until they are fully combined. 

5. Cover the bowl with foil or cling wrap, and place in the fridge to harden for 45 minutes to an hour. 

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

7. In a bowl, pour about 1/3 of coconut shreds into it.

8. Take the dough out of the fridge and roll the dough into balls the size of a ping pong ball.

9. Roll the balls in the coconut shreds and place on an undressed cookie sheet.

10. With your thumb, make an imprint in the middle of the cookie.

11. Using a small spoon, spoon some of the chia jam into the imprint in the cookie.

12. Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes, or until they become golden brown. 

Store these in the refrigerator in an air tight container as there are no preservatives in the jam! 

Enjoy!

*Note - You can use any jam you want! Strawberry or blackberry would be fantastic as well!

Raspberry Chia Seed Jam

Have you heard of chia seeds before? I am sure you have as they have become a health craze and been classified a superfood. Let me tell you some reasons why chia seeds are superfood and catching so much buzz in the health and fitness world.

Chia seeds (ounce per ounce) have:

• 100% more potassium than bananas
• 200% more iron than spinach
• 100% more fiber than bran flakes 
• 500% more calcium than milk
• 700% more omega 3 than salmon
• 1400% more magnesium than broccoli 
• 500% more protein than kidney beans
• 800% more phosphorus than whole milk
• more folate than asparagus
• more antioxidants than blueberries

If those facts don't scream superfood qualities, I don't know what does! 

The best part of this little seed is everything you can do with it! Some of them include:

• Chia Eggs
• Adding them to smoothies
• Chia pudding (recipe coming later this week!)
• Homemade energy gel
• Use them for a thickener...

...Which leads me to today's recipe, Raspberry Chia Seed Jam! It is refined sugar free, easy to make, and the best part... DELICIOUS! If you aren't fond of raspberries, you can use any berry or grape you would prefer. 

Raspberry Chia Seed Jam

(makes about 1 cup of jam)

Ingredients:

2 cups of frozen or non-frozen raspberries (preferably organic) 

1/4 cup water

2 tbslp honey or maple syrup (3 tblsp if you want a sweeter jam)

2 tbslp chia seeds

Method:

1. If you are using frozen raspberries, allow them to defrost in the refrigerator first.

2. Add raspberries, water, and honey/maple syrup to a pot and bring to a boil.
3. While waiting for it to come to a boil, use a potato masher or fork to mash up the raspberries.

4. Once it is boiling, turn the heat down and simmer uncovered for 5-7 minutes, or until the mixture begins to thicken.

5. Once it starts to thicken, turn off the heat and stir in the chia seeds.

6. Allow the mixture to cool down for 10-15 minutes, pour into a mason or canning jar, and place in the refrigerator overnight.

The jam will last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Will last a shorter amount of time if using organic ingredients!

Enjoy! xo