Banana Peanut Butter Oat Bars

December 31, 2024
Credits

Recipe adapted from Sammi Brondo.

Ingredients

Makes 9 square bars

3 bananas, very ripe
¼ cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla paste
1¼ cup oats
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
½ cup chocolate chips

Process
```
preheat oven 350º F
```
1. grease a loaf pan (with butter, spray oil, or regular oil) or trim parchment paper to fit
2. mash bananas, add peanut butter, vanilla; mix
3. add oats, salt, baking powder; mix
4. fold in chocolate chips
5. pour mixture into prepared pan
```
bake ~30 minutes
```
1. let cool, then cut into bars
Notes
- I used natural peanut butter, but you can use whatever you have on hand
- quick cooking or rolled oats work best
- could try swirling through some jelly/jam (untested)
Oven // Recipe // Sweets

baking ○ better than takeout ○ dump and go ○ low effort ○ one pot pan or bowl ○ photo ○ quick ○ vegetarian

Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes

January 26, 2024

Credits

Recipe adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction. She has lots of incredibly helpful information so I encourage reading through her post.

Ingredients

amount	ingredient
250g	flour, all-purpose
60g	cocoa powder (not* dutch processed)*
2 tsp	baking soda
½ tsp	baking powder
1 tsp	espresso powder (optional)
½ tsp	salt
125g	oil
90g	applesauce, unsweetened
250g	sugar
15g	molasses
4	eggs
80g	sour cream
360g	zucchini, shredded
180g	chocolate chips

See notes for helpful ingredient information

Process

preheat oven: 350°

in medium bowl, combine all dry ingredients (flour through salt in the list); mix thoroughly
in a separate bowl, whisk wet ingredients (from oil through chocolate chips)
add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined
spray muffin tins with spray oil (or use cupcake liners), then divide the batter into the tins, almost filling each cavity

bake: ~22 minutes

let cupcakes cool for ~10 minutes on the counter, then remove from tray

nutrition

whole recipe: 1,495g = 4,517 calories
1 cupcake = 238 calories

notes

substitutions & replacement

because of the science involved, the cocoa powder can’t be replaced with dutch-processed cocoa powder; read the original recipe post for more details (see Credits section above)
if you do not have applesauce, you can just use oil; you can replace some of the oil in most baked goods with applesauce
espresso powder deepens the chocolate flavor, without giving any coffee flavor in this amount; use it if you have it, skip it if you don’t
if you don’t have molasses, use 100g of regular sugar and 150g of brown sugar

other

all ingredients should be at room temp; if you’re like me, just heat a cup of water in the microwave to generate heat and steam, then put the sour cream and eggs in the TURNED OFF microwave to warm up before you start
oil the tray really well as they will stick to dry spots easily

See the freezing guide for tips and information on freezer-safe food storage.

Oven // Recipe // Sweets

american ○ baking ○ better than takeout ○ calories calculated ○ cupcakes ○ freezer friendly ○ photo ○ vegetarian

Chicken Tender Wrap

January 14, 2024

Frozen, breaded chicken tenders and flour tortillas turn into spicy chicken wraps with bold flavor and a pop of bright citrus.

ingredients

amount	ingredient
1	flour tortilla, large, warmed
1 slice	cheese, American (optional)
1 – 2	chicken tenders, spicy
to taste	mayonnaise
to taste	hot sauce
to taste	onions & jalapeños, pickled
to taste	cilantro, fresh, chopped
to taste	lettuce greens

assembly

heat tortilla according to preference (see notes below)
if using cheese, lay cheese on top of hot tortilla and add hot chicken tender on top so the cheese melts easily
layer the rest of the ingredients on top, ending with the lettuce so that you can more easily hold things down to roll without getting your hands dirty
roll up tortilla; it’s not necessary for complete overlap if you’re careful with holding it properly while eating

notes

naturally, all amounts are to-taste so do and use whatever you like
tortilla can be heated any way you prefer:
- stovetop: on a griddle, tawa, comal, or dry frying pan, turning to get nice brown spots and taking it off the heat once desired doneness is reached; do not heat too long or it will become crunchy and not foldable
- microwave: lay tortilla on microwave -safe plate and cover with a damp paper towel, heat until just warmed through; this will yield a soft, pliable tortilla that’s not crunchy at all
- airfryer / toaster oven / oven: heat for a few minutes until warmed through; avoid getting brown spots as it will turn into a giant tortilla chip pretty quickly, especially in a toaster oven or air fryer which works faster than a standard oven
any chicken tender will work, I use a spicy breaded variety and pop it in the airfryer for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway through
I use Frank’s hot sauce and find the simplicity of it plays nicely with both the mayo and pickles
for the greens, use whatever you have on hand: iceberg, spring mix, spinach, arugula, celery tops, romaine, etc.

Airfryer // Mains // Meal Ideas // Microwave // Oven // Stovetop

american ○ better than takeout ○ chicken ○ frozen foods ○ fusion ○ meat ○ one pot pan or bowl ○ photo ○ sandwich

Applesauce Muffins

June 22, 2022
Credits

Recipe modified from DrCackle on Reddit.

Ingredients

Makes 12 muffins

Amount Ingredient
240g flour, all purpose
50g sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
80g raisins
105g apple, peeled, finely diced
113g butter, unsalted, melted
380g applesauce, unsweetened

Process
1. preheat oven to 350° F
2. in medium, microwave-safe bowl: melt butter; add raisinsa + applesauce, heat through again if necessary (this is to hydrate the raisins)
3. add all dry ingredients to large bowl and mix
4. to the same bowl, add the rest of the ingredients, including the heated mixture from step #1
5. mix until just combined (batter will be quite thick)
6. lightly spray muffin tin with spray oil and divide batter evenly between tins
```
Bake: 30 minutes
```
Allow to cool on countertop for at least 15 minutes.

Nutrition

Whole Recipe: 867g = 2,409 calories
1 Muffin (73g) = 203 calories

Notes
- these are extremely low sugar, which is how I like them; most people may want to up the sugar and raisins
- recipe can probably handle increasing apple, cinnamon, and maybe even cloves
- these taste very healthy and could pass for breakfast muffins; try experimenting with adding additional vegetables like shredded carrots or zucchini.
See the freezing guide for tips and information on freezer-safe food storage.
Oven // Recipe // Sweets

baking ○ breakfast ○ calories calculated ○ freezer friendly ○ photo ○ quick ○ vegetarian
Bistro Turkey Sandwich

April 26, 2022

Layer balsamic vinegar (or lemon balsamic vinaigrette), boursin cheese, arugula, sliced tomatoes and smoked deli turkey on toasted bread.

Mains // Meal Ideas // Oven

meat ○ photo ○ quick ○ sandwich ○ turkey
Quasi-Caprese Bagel

April 19, 2022
Ingredients

Amount Ingredient
1 bagel, toasted
25g boursin, cracked pepper
~4 tomatoes, cherry
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
3 basil leaves, fresh, ribboned

Process
1. toast bagel
2. spread each slice with boursin; layer other ingredients on top
Nutrition

470 calories

Notes
- I used and recommend an everything bagel
- you can use any flavor of boursin, but I recommend the cracked pepper one; if you don’t have it, crack some fresh black pepper on top of whatever flavor boursin you have, after spreading
- can turn it into a breakfast sandwich by adding an over easy fried egg on top
Mains // Oven // Recipe

better than takeout ○ breakfast ○ calories calculated ○ italian ○ photo ○ quick ○ sandwich ○ vegetarian
Chocolate Cake

December 3, 2021
Credits

Recipe adapted from Bon Appétit.

Ingredients

Makes 1 9″ cake round

Amount Ingredient
160g flour, all purpose
250g sugar
5g baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
8g salt, kosher
41g cocoa powder
163g oil, vegetable
2 eggs, large
4g vanilla extract
1 cup milk, warmed

Process
1. Preheat oven: 325°F
2. Grease cake pan with butter and lay down a parchment round on the bottom.
3. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (except the milk).
5. Add wet ingrediets to dry and mix with a spatula; it will be firm and pasty.
6. Add warmed milk and mix until just uniform and combined.
7. Pour immediately into prepared cake pan
```
Bake: 40-50 minutes
```
1. Let cool before cutting.
Notes
- Can sub regular table salt for kosher, use slightly less.
Oven // Recipe // Sweets

baking ○ dump and go ○ one pot pan or bowl ○ vegetarian
Fish on a Bed of Salad

November 30, 2021
Pair breaded and frozen white fish fillets on a pile of lightly dressed, bagged salad.

Products

Costco
- Panko crusted tilapia
- Mediterranean crunch chopped salad
Assembly
1. Prepare the fish in toaster oven, air fryer, George Foreman grill, or panini press (no need for any extra oil).
2. Lightly dress salad with included dressing; no need to use up the entire dressing packet.
Airfryer // Mains // Meal Ideas // Oven // Salad

fish ○ low effort ○ one pot pan or bowl ○ photo ○ quick ○ seafood

Amount	Ingredient
240g	flour, all purpose
50g	sugar
2 tsp	baking soda
1 tsp	salt
1 tsp	cinnamon
¼ tsp	ground cloves
80g	raisins
105g	apple, peeled, finely diced
113g	butter, unsalted, melted
380g	applesauce, unsweetened

Amount	Ingredient
1	bagel, toasted
25g	boursin, cracked pepper
~4	tomatoes, cherry
1 tsp	balsamic vinegar
3	basil leaves, fresh, ribboned

Amount	Ingredient
160g	flour, all purpose
250g	sugar
5g	baking powder
¼ tsp	baking soda
8g	salt, kosher
41g	cocoa powder
163g	oil, vegetable
2	eggs, large
4g	vanilla extract
1 cup	milk, warmed

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

November 29, 2021

Credits

Recipe modified from LittleMuffinWhore on Reddit.

Ingredients

Makes 12 muffins

Amount	Ingredient
300g	banana, ripe, mashed
50g	sugar
240g	flour, all-purpose, unbleached
1 tsp	baking powder
½ tsp	baking soda
½ tsp	cinnamon
1 tsp	salt
90g	chocolate chips, semi-sweet
245g	milk
50g	oil
2 tsp	vinegar, white

Process

Preheat oven to 350°F
Mash bananas and sugar together in a shallow bowl, set aside
In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients until uniform. Add chocolate chips; mix. Add banana mash + wet ingredients and mix gently until most of the flour is absorbed (some dry patches here and there are fine)
Spray muffin tray with spray oil and divide batter evenly between all 12 cavities

Bake: 25 minutes

Remove from oven and let muffins cool in tray

Nutrition

100g = 278 calories

Approximately 193 calories per muffin.

Notes

The recipe is very forgiving and will work with less banana or a little bit more
If you fall short in banana amount, you can make up the difference using some other fruit puree or applesauce (to keep the moisture ratio)
Process can be simplified by mashing bananas in the same large bowl as everything else will go in
Oven temperatures vary; start checking on the muffins at around the 20 minute mark, then every 5 minutes or so
If using frozen bananas:
- thaw in fridge overnight or in microwave if in a pinch
- squish defrosted bananas in bag to mash

Oven // Recipe // Sweets

breakfast ○ calories calculated ○ dump and go ○ one pot pan or bowl ○ photo ○ vegetarian

Cherry Almond Scones

November 25, 2021

Credits

Recipe adapted from Everyday Gourmet with Blakely.

Ingredients

Makes 4 scones

Amount	Ingredient
120g	flour, all purpose, unbleached
25g + 6g	sugar, divided
1tsp	baking powder
⅛ tsp	salt
28g	butter, cold
1 tsp	vanilla extract
⅛ tsp	almond extract
90g	milk
½ cup	cherries, fresh, pitted, halved
15g	almonds, slivered

Process

Preheat oven (or toaster oven / airfryer) at 425° F.
In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add cold butter and work into the dry ingredients with your hands until all the butter has become little bits.
Mix in vanilla and almond extracts, milk, cherries, and almonds.
Turn dough out onto parchment paper and press into a rough square of even thickness. Wet hands with water if dough is sticking.
Cut an “X” shape into the dough to form 4 triangle pastries.
Wet the tops with water (or milk) and dust with the 6g of sugar.

Bake: 20 minutes

Nutrition

Calories: 240 per scone

Notes

If using raw almonds, cover with water and microwave for 1 minute, remove skins, then sliver
Rotate tray halfway through bake time if browning is uneven; this varies by oven.

Oven // Recipe // Sweets

baking ○ better than takeout ○ breakfast ○ calories calculated ○ pastry ○ photo ○ quick ○ vegetarian

Credits

Ingredients

Process

Notes

Credits

Ingredients

Process

nutrition

notes

substitutions & replacement

other

ingredients

assembly

notes

Credits

Ingredients

Process

Nutrition

Notes

Ingredients

Process

Nutrition

Notes

Credits

Ingredients

Process

Notes

Products

Costco

Assembly

Credits

Ingredients

Process

Nutrition

Notes

Credits

Ingredients

Process

Nutrition

Notes