Healthy 3-Ingredient Spinach Artichoke Side Dish

Creamy, rich flavor in a side dish you can feel good about feeding your family! I love it when healthy tastes good! 

What makes this recipe over-the-top on the must-make-again scale is that it has just THREE ingredients. You can whip it up in about 10 minutes! Seriously!

Here's the starring line-up: Neufchatel cheese, marinated artichoke hearts, and frozen chopped spinach! That is it!

Healthy, 3-Ingredient Spinach Artichoke Side Dish

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

16 ounce package frozen chopped spinach

1 cup of marinated artichoke hearts, drained slightly

4 ounces Neufchatel cheese (cream cheese works), cut into 1/2-ounce chunks

Directions:

1. Place artichoke hearts in a blender or food processor, and pulse until chopped small--almost a puree.

2. Cook spinach in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until defrosted. Add chopped artichoke hearts to spinach and increase heat to medium-high, stirring often. 

3. Once boiling, add Neufchatel cheese, reduce heat to low, and cover.

4. Cook 2-4 more minutes, stirring cheese in as it melts.  Serve warm.

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Chocolate Avocado Brownies

I bought avocados last week to make some guacamole for taco night. Well, taco night came and went, and my avocados were still sitting in the fruit basket. I forgot to use them, and they were ready to be used. 

Meanwhile, my family was hankering for me to make a treat. I'd taken a break from treat-making since the new year, and they were starting to forage (eating chocolate chips right out of the bag, melting marshmallows on crakers, etc).  So I tried to find a brownie recipe that called for avocado. Sound crazy? I thought there HAD to be one. I made a chocolate mousse with avocados as the base a few years ago from the Deceptively Delicious cookbook that was incredible. Surely someone had incorporated avocado into brownies. 

Well, my search didn't turn up much in the way of brownies. I found some chocolate puddings and cupcakes, and some layer-bars. But I was hoping for brownies. So I decided to give it a go myself.  And I'm so glad I did! I made brownies (using avocado!) that have what I consider to be the perfect brownie consistency: slightly crispy on the outside; dense, moist and chewy on the inside (but not under-cooked). These were a crowd-pleaser AND a mommy-pleaser! My kids were getting all kinds of hidden nutrients as they gobbled them up!

Here's the recipe: 

Chocolate Avocado Brownies

Makes 24 

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup avocado puree (about 3 medium avocados)

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 eggs

1 stick butter, melted

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour (I used whole wheat!)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet, but milk is fine if you prefer sweeter)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare a 9"x13" baking dish with cooking spray.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, beat avocado puree with cocoa powder. Add eggs and beat at medium speed just until mixed. If you are using a stand mixer, use the paddle/cookie dough attachment from this point on. 

3. Mix melted butter with white sugar and add to avocado mixture. Mix in brown sugar and vanilla.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to wet mixture and stir well. Stir in 1 cup of chocolate chips. 

5. Spread evenly in prepared dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips on top. 

6. Bake 20 minutes. Serve warm or cooled. Perfect with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

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Creamy Kale Dip

Do you like spinach dip? I'm a total sucker for it. I have had spinach dip as the main course for some of my eat-alone meals (with sides of tortilla chips, crackers, and carrots).

But as good for us as spinach is, it has been trumped. Move over Spinach; Kale is the new Super Food in town.

I don't know about you, but I've had a harder time with kale.  Spinach is delicious with virtually no work. It can hold it's own in fresh salads. Kale tends to be bitter and tough. It kind of HAS to be cooked or steamed. I've tried making kale "chips"--where you drizzle fresh kale leaves in olive oil and roast them in the oven. They were edible, but hardly competition for any other "chips" I've eaten. 

So I am SUPER excited to share a version of kale consumption that is not just tolerable, but down-right enjoyable. And it is super easy to make. You don't even need to tell anyone it is kale until they've raved about how yummy it is. 

My idea began with this. Look for it in your grocer's freezer section. It is inexpensive and cuts so much work out of preparation.  All you need to do is cook the kale according to package directions. Drain and cool.

Add one package of Knorr Vegetable Recipe Mix, 1 cup of mayo, and one cup of sour cream. Mix well and store in the fridge for about an hour before serving.

We ate ours with chopped veggies (red bell peppers, cucumbers, jicama, and carrots), and tortilla chips.

 It doesn't taste exactly like spinach dip. But it doesn't taste like any kale recipe I've ever had either. It is better. It is perfect to serve at football game parties, book clubs, baby showers, or just to snack on for the heck of it!

Creamy Kale Dip

Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients:

1 12oz package chopped frozen Kale

1 1.4 oz package Knorr vegetable recipe mix

1 cup mayonnaise 

1 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Cook kale on stove according to package directions. (Note that it cooks longer than most veggies--about 20-25 minutes of simmering). Drain well, and cool.

2. Mixed drained kale with remaining ingredients. Cover and put in fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving. 

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Blackeyed Pea Salsa

How many of you grew up eating blackeyed peas every New Year's Day for good luck?  I think it must be a Southern tradition, because I mentioned it to my neighbor, and she'd never heard of such a thing. 

Well, wherever the tradition came from, (I searched the tradition on Google, and didn't find a certain origin), I am continuing it with my family. 

This year, instead of traditional blackeyed peas with bacon over cornbread (as it is usually served in the South), I made Blackeyed Pea Salsa. Super delicious, easy, and very healthy! Perfect for your New Year's health resolutions!

I pulled a bowl of it together in about 15 minutes. We devoured it during the afternoon football games! Lots of good fortune for us this year....though apparently our favorite football team didn't eat their blackeyed peas before the game. :(

Here's the recipe:

Blackeyed Pea Salsa

Ingredients:

1 (15.5oz) can blackeyed peas, drained and rinsed

1 (15.5oz) can corn, drained

5 Roma tomatoes, chopped small

1/3 cup red onion, chopped small (about 1/4 whole onion)

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped small

1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro

Juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cumin

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl. Let sit about 30 minutes before serving. Store covered in refrigerator. 

Serve with tortilla chips, tacos, fajitas, or just a spoon. :)

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Parmesan and Scallion Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus is in season, which means not only is it in abundance, but it is typically a pretty good deal at the supermarket. And it should continue to be for a few months.  

Asparagus is one of the few veggies I didn't grow up eating. We ate a variety--okra, rutabaga, beets, and all kinds of squash--but I never once remember eating asparagus. I've asked my parents about this, and one of them (my dad, I think) had only ever had canned asparagus, and so determined he didn't care for it. As a result,  my mom never made it. I think they eat it often now, though. 

Despite my childhood deprivation, I LOVE this vegetable. I actually started a patch of it in the garden of our old house. Hopefully the new owners are reaping the benefits of my labors.  My favorite way to prepare asparagus is roasting it. And this recipe is a fail-safe favorite. The stalks are tender, but not slimy, well-seasoned, and pretty to present. 

Here's the how-to, followed by the recipe:

Cut woody ends off asparagus stalks. In a large bowl, toss together asparagus, scallions, oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and shredded Parmesan cheese.

Spread coated stalks on a roasting pan. Scoop up the scallions and cheese that are left in the bowl and spread across the top of the asparagus.

Here they are, ready to go in the oven. Roast at 450° for 15 minutes. 

Serve warm. Asparagus are one of the few foods that are appropriate to eat with your fingers. Did you know that? I still use a fork sometimes, though. 

Parmesan and Scallion Roasted Asparagus

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh asparagus 

1/4 cup avocado oil (olive or canola work, too)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Pinch of ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

3 scallions (green onions), chopped

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Chop tough, woody ends off the asparagus stalks. I usually take about 2 inches off. 

2. Toss all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, completely coating the asparagus in the oil and spices.

3. Spread the asparagus in a row on a large roasting pan. It is okay for them to touch and overlap some.  Scrape the bowl for the excess scallions, cheese, and oil. Spread this across the top of the row of asparagus.

4. Bake 15 minutes. Remove immediately, and serve promptly.  

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