Chia Seed Pudding

Chia Seed Pudding

I probably would have never tried chia seeds, but they were on sale at Costco and I was buying things to make homemade granola bars and I thought they would be a healthy addition to them (and they were.) I also thought there might be other ways to use them and I heard about this "pudding." The kids didn't like it, but I really like it as a light breakfast.

I made several changes that I'm noting here for me to remember later. I used plain unsweetened almond milk, regular whole milk non-Greek yogurt and I didn't add any more maple syrup other than the initial amount called for. (I didn't add any the next day.) I mixed in frozen blueberries the next morning and had my whole almonds on the side. One recipe was enough for me to eat on for three breakfasts. 

This is definitely a keeper! 

Flourless Banana Pancakes

This might be a huge dud, but I'm going to try it. Putting it here to keep, and I will report back! 

Flourless Banana Pancakes

Homemade Energy Bars

I made four different varieties of these today. I like them all! I freeze them so they are easier to cut (and eat.) 

Homemade Lara Bars

Raw Energy Bars

I'm cutting back on the store bought snacks I buy, for a lot of reasons, and one thing I want to make several versions of is a "granola bar." This is one I have made on and off for years, and the recipe was hard to find this time. I'll link it at the bottom, but I'm pasting the text here, just in case! 

Here’s a raw bar full of nutritious energy for snacks, lunchboxes, picnics, and even dessert!

1/4 cup sesame seeds

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup dried figs

1/2 cup peanut butter, almond butter, or tahini

Place sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, raisins, and figs in food processor with metal blade. Chop until everything is ground together. Add nut or seed butter and mix until combined. Roll mixture into balls or press into 8-inch round cake pan and cut into 1-inch squares. Keep refrigerated. Makes about 3 dozen Note: Nuts can be substituted for seeds and other dried fruit can be substituted for raisins and figs. Variation: Coconut Energy Bars: Add 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut to mixture. Add a little coconut milk if necessary to help balls hold together.

- See more at: http://www.mothering.com/articles/raw-energy-bars/#sthash.hDYv3h2j.dpuf

Egg Muffins

I accidentally bought the Italian-style ground turkey and used that, and I couldn't tell a difference between that and the turkey sausage!

Egg and Sausage Muffins 

• 1 pound lean ground turkey, I used 93% lean
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Kosher or sea salt to taste

Read more at http://skinnyms.com/skinny-breakfast-sausage/#P6qXgP71DbBWICeG.99

• 1 pound lean ground turkey, I used 93% lean
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Kosher or sea salt to taste

Read more at http://skinnyms.com/skinny-breakfast-sausage/#P6qXgP71DbBWICeG.99

• 1 pound lean ground turkey, I used 93% lean
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Kosher or sea salt to taste

Read more at http://skinnyms.com/skinny-breakfast-sausage/#P6qXgP71DbBWICeG.99

Potato Casserole

I'm going to make this a side dish with fried green tomatoes. (and a few other things...)  I hope it's good enough to keep as a breakfast dish too! 

Skinny Potato Casserole

Sausage balls

Since I discovered my homemade sausage recipe, I've been having fun with sausage lately! I wanted to make sausage balls for a football party, but I wanted one with no Bisquick. (I don't use Bisquick.)

I found two, and I so far I like Martha Stewart's better. 

Martha Stewart's Sausage Balls

Here is the other one I found too, which also includes another recipe for turkey sausage to try! 

Sausage Balls

So yay for sausage balls! 

Breakfast Sausage

I have looked for an easy breakfast sausage that I could make for a long time. I like to have it occasionally as patties served with breakfast and also like to use it in our favorite breakfast casserole. It was my aim to find a recipe that was both tasty and didn't have all the harmful ingredients that prepackaged sausage have.

This is the recipe I used, and I really like it. I used lean ground turkey. I think if there was anything I missed it was the greasiness of regular sausage. Perhaps using lean ground beef would add that wonderful missing ingredient?

This will definitely be a staple in our breakfast routine, and I can't wait to try it in the breakfast casserole recipe.

*** Edited to add. I did miss the greasiness of regular sausage. I have been carefully saving my good bacon grease, and in a moment of ingenuity I added about a teaspoon of grease to this recipe and they were perfect. Yay!

Breakfast Casserole

My friend Tracy calls this recipe "The Mancatcher." I call it the "Rear Extender." Either way, it's a super simple breakfast casserole that we all love best at dinner time!

 (Courtesy of either my friends Sandi and/or Jennifer V. I'll blame the 40 pounds this recipe has given me on either one of them.)

Ingredients:

1. 2 rolls refrigerated crescent rolls. 

2. 1 can Rotel. (I use Mild)

3. I block cream cheese

4. 1 pound sausage (The kind that crumbles when you cook it. Not the links) 

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 350.

Brown the sausage in a skillet. When browned, add Rotel and cream cheese and mix well. Let simmer for 10 minutes or so. Unroll one crescent roll into the bottom of a Pyrex dish. Pour sausage mixture on top of crescent roll, and then unroll the other crescent roll on top of sausage mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until the top crescent roll is browned.

Yep. That's it. And according to Tracy, you can catch (or keep) a man with this sucker. :)