Mini Mexican Pizzas

Good grief, I think I must be on a "muffin tin" cooking kick the last little bit! ha ha  But in all honesty, little "bite size" delights are so easy to serve and re-heat! PERFECT for moms who like to meal prep, or have meals prepared in advance before the crazy work week begins. I am sure they would be delicious after you froze them too.  This recipe came from the newest cookbook to grace my pantry shelves from Katie Farrell, creator of "Dashing Dish."  While my little delights didn't turn out as pretty as hers, they were delicious nonetheless.  So delish, I am making them again next week!

I did make modifications to the original recipe in the cookbook some things I would keep the same and others I would change.  For example I used Ezekiel wraps.  Here they can only be found in the frozen section at our local grocery store.  When they thawed I found them thin and they cracked a little when I tried to place them in the muffin tins.  I would opt for whole grain or whole wheat wraps next time.

I also used ground chicken instead of ground turkey. I don't know if it is this pregnancy or what, but I can't seem to stomach ground turkey so ground chicken it is!!!

I also stuffed each little pizza shell without having cooked the chicken first (only because I looked at the recipe much too fast).  If you decide to use this method, make sure you preheat the oven to 350 degrees and cook the pizza's for 40-45minutes.

Ingredients: 
~ 4 large whole wheat tortillas, or big enough to cut out 12 small circles.
~ 1 pound of lean ground chicken cooked (raw is fine, but you will have to cook longer. See notes above!)
~1/2 cup of salsa of your choice
~2 tsp of taco seasoning (I used the Epicure brand to avoid sodium but you can also make your own. I would avoid using pre-packaged taco seasoning).
1/2 cup refried beans
1/2 cup shredded marble cheese (low fat shredded Mexican blend was suggested)

Toppings: 
~Salsa
~Green onion
~Shredded lettuce (I am sure iceberg lettuce would "taste" better but I used romaine because there is no nutritional content in iceberg lettuce. I still found it great!)
~Greek yogurt
~Chopped tomatoes
~Avocado
~Sliced black olives (Yuck! ha ha, but what ever floats your boat. I did not use these!)
**If you are following the 21 Day Fix Program you will need to adjust how you use the toppings according to your meal plan. ;)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin with coconut oil cooking spray or a spray of your choice.  Lay tortilla on a flat surface and using a round cookie cutter or a glass, cut 3-4 medium circles out of each tortilla.  Press each circle into muffing cup using your fingers. If it doesn't cover the entire side of the cup, that is ok!

In a small bowl, mix together the "cooked" ground chicken, salsa, taco seasoning and refried beans. Stir until well combined.   Scoop approx. 2 Tbsp of the meat mixture into each tortilla. Top each mini pizza evenly with shredded cheese.  Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Wait for tortillas to cook before removing from the muffin tin.  A knife is helpful to pop out each little pizza.  Serve with the toppings of your choice and voila!

This recipe is certain to be a family favourite! Please feel free to share or pin!!!

If you are following the 21 Day Fix program, here is how it breaks down according to my best judgement... 2 mini pizza's = 1 Red, 1 Yellow, 1/3 Blue (*Toppings are additional).

Chicken Parmesan Bites

Ok, this recipe was a show stopper!!!!  Honestly a family favourite!  Easy to make and SOOO good left over. I made these especially so that I could prep them in advance for my family's lunches last week.  The bites were perfect to have as left overs for 4 days!  I would give them hands down an "11/10!" A++!!!!!  This recipe came from my new "Dashing Dish" cookbook by Katie Farrell.  Love this book so far!

Ingredients:
1 cup of frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 small onion, finely chopped (I used a sweet onion)
1 tsp fresh garlic, minced
1 pound lean ground chicken
2 large eggs
1 cup canned diced tomatoes drained (I used Alymer, petite-cut tomatoes with celery & green pepper)
1/4 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese (divided)
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp salt
Pinch of black pepper
1 cup marinara or spaghetti sauce
Fresh or dried parsley for garnish (*optional)

Directions: 
1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with parchment paper liners and spray lightly with cooking spray (coconut oil cooking spray is preferred).  Silicon liners lightly sprayed also work well.
3.  In a small frying pan, saute the spinach, onions, and garlic over medium heat until the onions are translucent.  Remove from stove and let mixture cool to room temperature.
4.  In a large bowl combine the ground chicken, spinach mixture, eggs, diced tomatoes (drained), oats, 1/2 cup Parmesan, basil, oregano, salt and pepper.  *Don't over mix or the meat will get tough.
5.  Divide mixture among the muffin cups.  You want about 1/4 cup of mixture into each muffin cup.
6.  Top each muffin with 2 TBSP of the marina sauce and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan among the 12 muffins.
7.  Bake for 35-40 minutes or until each mini muffin, reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees and is no longer pink in the middle. My thermometer is broken so I just did the old fashioned, "cut one in half."  Remove from the oven and allow the meat to rest for 5 minutes before slicing (oops!) or serving.  Garnish with parsley for fun!

***If you are following the 21 Day Fix program, I would count 2 of these mini muffins as (1) red container.  There wouldn't be enough spinach/onion or even marinara sauce to merit counting any part of a green, purple or even tsp container, but that is just my opinion. :)

Swiss Oatmeal

I have been trying to be adventurous in trying some new recipes the last few weeks. I have invested in some new cookbooks and "Fixate", by Autumn Calabrese has been gracing my pantry shelf, barely opened!!

So in an effort to be prepared for church this week, I thought Swiss Oatmeal sounded like the perfect "new" recipe to have prepared in advance!  Was it a family favourite? Not sure about the boys, but I personally did like it.  With that said, I made WAY too much and couldn't finish it all. I feel like the recipe in the book could easily do 2 servings as opposed to 1 as it suggests.  Please give it a shot and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (gluten-free would be preferred. I didn't use gluten free)
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (divided use)
3/4 cup plain greek yogurt (original recipe suggests 2% reduced fat yogurt)
1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped strawberries
1/4 medium banana, chopped
Slivered almonds (or 12 raw almonds, chopped)
Maple syrup or stevia (to taste; optional)

(***I feel like this recipe would serve 2 adults comfortably, but the cookbook states that this recipe serves 1. Use your judgement. :))

1.  Place oats, 1/2 cp almond milk, yogurt, extract, and cinnamon in a medium bowl; mix well and soak, covered, in the refrigerator overnight.

2.  In the morning, add remaining almond milk (1/4 cup) and mix well.

3.  Top with strawberries, chopped banana, slivered almonds and drizzle with maple syrup (if desired) over the top.

If you are following the 21 Day Fix Program, the container equivalents are:  (2) yellow, (1) purple,
(1) red and (1) blue.

Clean Pumpkin Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese

Ok, well if any of you know me, you probably clued in to the fact that seeing "Maple" in the title drew me to this recipe! I love MAPLE anything!!!!!  This recipe actually comes from Autumn Calbrese's Fixate Cookbook. If you don't know who Autumn is, she is the creator of the 21 Day Fix and it is her program that helped me lose 30lbs!!!!  Autumn is one of Team Beachbody's top Celebrity Trainers and when I started her program, I had no idea I would one day have not only one, but TWO opportunities to meet her and even obtain a cookbook with her autograph!  *Out of this world! Now, I know you aren't here to read about all of that, so I will get on with the recipe. :) 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of cream cheese

1 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 1/2 cups of almond flour

3/4 tsp. baking soda (gluten-free)

1 dash Himalayan salt (or sea salt)

2 Tbsp. raw pumpkin seeds

Steps:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2.  Prepare nine muffin cups with parchment muffin tin liners or use coat muffin cups with non-stick spray. Pam has a new coconut spray! 

3.  Combine cream cheese and maple syrup in a small bowl; beat with mixers so it becomes smooth.

4.  Combine egg and pumpkin in a medium bowl; mix well. Set aside.

5.  Combine almond flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; mix well. 

6.  Add almond meal mixture to egg mixture; mix until just blended.

7.  Spoon batter into each prepared muffin cup, filling a little less than 1/2 full.

8.  Spoon about 1 heaping tsp. cream cheese mixture into the centre of each muffin. 

9.  Then, evenly fill muffin cups 3/4 full with remaining batter.

10. Sprinkle muffins evenly with pumpkin seeds.

11.  Bake 16-18 minutes, or until golden brown and toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

12.  Transfer muffins to rack to cool!  And finally, enjoy!!!

If you are following the 21 Day Fix program, one muffin equates to 1 Purple and 1 Orange.

If you are interested in obtaining a cookbook or joining one of my upcoming challenge groups, feel free to send me an email (sasijewelry@gmail.com), find me on Facebook, or check out my Team Beachbody website!