Chocolate Chip Cookies with Almond Flour

My father has type 2 diabetes and I wanted to make something for him, something sweet. I know almond flour and oats are good for him, I bought some sugar free chocolate and I made these cookies. They freeze well so he can have dessert once in a while, he just needs to take one out from the freezer :-)
This is the Quaker oatmeal cookies recipe, modified for my dad.

Ingredients:

½ cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened

12 packets of Truvia or other sweetener equivalent of ½ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1- ½ cups almond flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)

2 sugar free chocolate bars, broken in small pieces
almonds to top the cookies

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In large bowl, beat butter and Truvia on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs; beat well.

Add combined almond flour, baking soda, and salt; mix well. Add oats and chocolate; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Top each cookie with 1 almond.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown.

Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack.

Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Tags: Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies recipe, almond flour Quaker oatmeal cookies recipe, cookies for diabetes, diabetes friendly recipes

Spaghetti Squash with Tomato and Basil

I bought a spaghetti squash and I decided to make just half of it today. I made a savory squash recipe to go with a nice steak. The worst part of it was the fight with the squash. I had to cut it in half. Really, if you have a strong guy next to you just give him the knife to deal with the squash. Ohhh, I was exhausted. After that it was piece of cake. Tomorrow I will use the other half, maybe I will make it with some spaghetti sauce and meatballs.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/2 medium spaghetti squash

5-6 small tomatoes, quartered

2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil

1 small clove garlic, crushed  

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Salt to taste

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Italian dressing (optional)

Directions:

Carefully cut the squash in half.

Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff.

Microwave cut side up on high for about 8-10 minutes. Once the flesh can easily be poked with a fork it’s done.

Let it cool.

Scoop squash out of the peel with a fork into a strainer.

Toss in a large bowl with the tomato, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.

Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serve with grated parmesan cheese or add a little italian dressing.

Tags: Spaghetti Squash with Tomato and Basil recipe, savory Spaghetti Squash recipe

Grilled Brussel Sprouts

Even a Brussel Sprout hater would love these. Grilling is the secret. This convinced me. Now I am crazy about them.You can use any kind of spices: vegetable seasoning and olive oil is perfect. Today I mixed a few spices and I really like this combination. Buy small Brussel sprouts and grill them on medium heat.

Ingredients:
1 lb Brussel Sprouts
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper


Directions:

Preheat grill.
In a bowl mix olive oil with garlic powder, dry mustard, cumin, salt and pepper.
Cut off stem of Brussel sprouts. Remove dry or yellow leaves. If they are larger, you can cut them in half.
Wash and drain brussel sprouts, and put them into the bowl.
Coat the brussel sprouts with olive oil mixture.

Arrange on the grill in a single layer. Grill over medium heat for about 15 minutes or until tender.

Serve hot.

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Beef Burger

When we're having homemade burgers, I don't just make patties of the ground beef. I love to spice it up. Here is a burger with shallots, garlic, celery salt…..hmmmm. I like to season the ground beef and then form it into patties.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (I used ground sirloin)

1 medium shallot, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

¼ teaspoon celery salt

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

In a bowl combine the ground beef, shallot, garlic, celery salt, salt and pepper.

Form 2 large or 4 small patties. If you have time you can refrigerate it for about 2 hours.

Preheat a grill or a heavy skillet to medium-high heat, spray it with oil, and grill the patties on both sides until they are cooked to desired doneness.

If you like cheese burgers, place a slice of cheese on top of each patty, or add some crumbled blue cheese and allow to melt.

To assemble the burger

Put the mayo and the green salad on the bottom half of the burger bun, then continue with the burger patty, tomato, onion, ketchup and mustard. Place the other half of the burger bun on top and serve.

Tags: Beef Burger with Shallot and Garlic recipe, Beef Hamburger with Shallot and Garlic recipes, Beef Burger recipe, juicy beef burger recipe, food photography, food photos, food, pictures

Caprese Salad with Lima Beans

I had a small jar of giant white beans in tomato sauce. This is a traditional greek food, delicious as a side dish for chicken or lamb. It’s so hot and I didn’t want to cook, so I made a salad. The beans are in a really delicious tomato sauce and I use it in the salad.

What happens when you mix an italian salad with greek beans? Something sooo good. You can’t go wrong with the flavors happening here.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 handful of fresh basil
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cubed into small bites
1 pound ripe tomatoes, sliced or chopped
12 ounce can lima beans in tomato sauce (Gigantes)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Adjust seasoning.

Enjoy!
Tags: Caprese Salad with Lima Beans recipe, recipe with lima beans, Caprese Salad with Gigantes recipe, salad recipes with picture

Feta and Artichoke Dip & Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

I had 1 lb of feta cheese and I just didn’t know what to do with it.

Couple of month ago I ordered a nice feta and roasted red pepper appetizer in a greek restaurant and I loved it, it’s called Htipiti. I don’t know exactly how they make it, but I made my own dip. I have roasted red peppers and artichokes in my pantry so I decided to make some dips. You can roast your red peppers or you can use peppers from a jar. I used some greek yougurt because my feta was very salty.  Serve it with warm pita bread. If you want a spread add less greek yogurt.

Feta and Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:

1 small jar of marinated artichokes (7 oz)

½ lb. Feta cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoon greek yogurt

2 tbsp. marinade liquid from the artichokes

2 tbsp. lemon juice

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

Put all the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. You can use a hand mixer or a blender if you don’t have a food processor. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Ingredients:

2 large red peppers, roasted, peeled, and seeded

½ lb. Feta cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoon greek yogurt

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. lemon juice

¼ teaspoon paprika

¼ teaspoon black pepper

a pinch of red pepper flakes

Directions:

Chop the red peppers into large chunks.

Put all the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. You can use a hand mixer or a blender if you don’t have a food processor. Taste and adjust seasoning.

I love to eat this with vegetables. Just make a vegetable and dip platter with radish slices, pepper, or cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, carrots, celery whatever you have at home, add some pita bread and you are done. Delicious.

Tags: Feta and Artichoke Dip & Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip recipe, Feta and Artichoke Dip recipe, Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip recipe, dip recipes

Banana Strawberry Smoothie

Summer is almost over, but it’s still hot out there. A nice and cold smoothie is the perfect drink. I used frozen fruits (I always have some bananas and other fruits in the freezer).

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
1 medium banana, frozen and sliced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt

Honey or other sweetener if needed

Directions:

Put all ingredients in a blender.
Blend until completely smooth.  

Serve immediately.  

Tags: Strawberry Banana Smoothie recipe, Frozen Strawberry Banana Smoothie recipe, Banana Strawberry Smoothie recipe

Multicolored Cauliflower and Broccoli Gratin

Gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous. This is so easy and tasty you wil prepare it again and again and again.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

2 ½ lb cauliflower (white, purple, green)

½ lb broccoli

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoon flour

2 cups hot milk

1 cup grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese

Salt

freshly ground black pepper

Grated nutmeg

Zucchini and Tomato Gratin

This is a great way to eat a lot of vegetables. Good and easy. Next time I will add fresh mozzarella cheese then sprinkle with bread crumbs. I bet it's gonna be amazing.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
2 shallots, thinly sliced
4 ripe tomatoes, cut into thin slices
olive oil
salt and pepper

fresh or dry thyme
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1 clove garlic

Zucchini Shallot Frittata

Ingredients:
Serves 2

4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 medium zucchini
1 shallot
1 cup shredded Gruyere or Parmesan cheese
salt
black pepper
vegetable seasoning
cooking spray

Directions: