Author: The Pesto Monster

Almond Butter Cups

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These almond butter cups are a great, healthy dupe for the classic Reeces. The only ingredients are dark chocolate, almond butter, coconut oil, maple syrup and sea salt. You can make them when you have a free moment and they keep in the freezer for up to a few months. They are the perfect thing for when you’re craving a light dessert or need a mid-afternoon pick-me-up.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cup dark chocolate (I used chips but you can use chunks, broken up chocolate bar, etc)
  • 4 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 2/3 cup almond butter
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Directions

  1. Add chocolate and 2 tablespoons of coconut oil to microwave-safe bowl
  2. Microwave in 30 second increments until smooth (I did 2 minutes total)
  3. Line a muffin tin with cupcake wrappers and add about 3/4 tablespoon of the melted chocolate mixture to each cup (I then use a knife to make sure the chocolate spreads evenly across bottom of cups)
  4. Place in freezer for 10 minutes
  5. While chocolate is freezing, add almond butter, remaining 2 tablespoons coconut oil and maple syrup to a microwave-safe bowl
  6. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir (won’t be as smooth as the chocolate)
  7. Remove muffin tin from freezer and add a heaping tablespoon of the almond butter mixture to each
  8. Using a knife, spread almond butter mixture evenly across chocolate layer
  9. Add remaining chocolate on top of almond butter (again, just under a tablespoon per cup)
  10. Use a knife to spread chocolate evenly and sprinkle top with sea salt
  11. Freeze for an hour and enjoy! (store extras in the freezer)

Blueberry Maple Oat Bars

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These blueberry bars are the perfect summer dessert! The lemon juice adds a layer of freshness, the oats keep them chewy and the maple syrup adds a rich, sticky sweetness. Serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and eat it outside.

This recipe calls for 1 cup of oat flour, which you can easily sub for regular flour, but I made it by grinding up 1 1/4 cup oats in a food processor until it was the texture of flour! Very easy to do.

Honestly, the hardest part of this recipe is waiting for it to cool once it comes out of the oven. Don’t try to cut into bars until it has cooled completely!

Ingredients

For the oat layers

  • 1/2 cup melted butter
  • 1 cup oat flour (or other flour)
  • 3/4 cup oats
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the blueberry filling

  • 2 cups blueberries
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • Juice from 1 lemon

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350
  2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for oat mixture with a rubber spatula
  3. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray
  4. Divide the oat mixture in half and layer one half on the bottom of the pan
  5. In a separate bowl, combine ingredients for blueberry filling
  6. Layer blueberry mixture over oat layer in the baking dish
  7. Layer remaining oat mixture over blueberry mixture
  8. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown (blueberry mixture should be bubbling)
  9. Allow to cool completely in baking dish before transferring to a platter
  10. Cut into 8 pieces, serve with ice cream!

Macadamia Cashew Chicken Wraps

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Before I start, this recipe requires a bit more prep time than the ones I usually post. You have to dice up the chicken into bite-size pieces which took me ~10 minutes to do and, if you’re anything like me, handling raw chicken for that long isn’t very appealing. BUT, this recipe is worth it. Trust me, I don’t mess with raw chicken for just anything.

The flavors and textures of the macadamia nuts, cashews, chicken, and vegetables combine into perfect bites. The amount of sauce is just right for the lettuce wraps (coats it well but no sauce squeezing out and causing a mess) but if you choose to serve this over rice instead, I would suggest making a little extra sauce.

I used romaine leaves because that’s what I had on hand but iceberg or butter lettuce may make it slightly easier to eat.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb chicken breasts
  • 3 tablespoons corn starch
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 1 cup diced red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 1/2 cup roasted macadamia nuts
  • 1/2 cup roasted cashews
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Sriracha
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 8 large romaine leaves

Directions

  1. Dice chicken breasts into bite-size pieces
  2. Transfer into a large ziplock and add cornstarch, salt and pepper. Seal and toss until coated
  3. In a large skillet, heat sesame oil and olive oil. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink
  4. Once chicken is mostly cooked, add broccoli, onion and peppers and cook for additional 5 minutes
  5. While the vegetables are cooking, roughly chop cashews and macadamia nuts and add to skillet
  6. Combine soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sriracha, maple syrup and garlic in a small bowl and pour into skillet
  7. Cook in sauce for additional 2-3 minutes
  8. Prepare the romaine leaves — cut off stem, wash and dry
  9. Evenly distribute chicken mixture into romaine leaves
  10. Serve warm!

Cold Brew

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I’ve been quarantining with my sister-in-law Jillian for the past few weeks and in that time, she has gotten me absolutely hooked on cold brew. She makes a big batch every few days and we just fly through it. It is smooth and refreshing and the best part is, once it is made, your morning cup of coffee takes absolutely zero prep.

You do need cold brew bags but Jillian easily found them on Amazon! And it takes time to steep (12-24 hours) so keep that in mind.

Ingredients

  • Coffee beans (dark roast is best, like a French Roast)
  • 8 cups water
  • Cold brew bags (4×6 inch)

Directions

  1. Coarsely grind the coffee beans (coarsest setting on a grinder, similar to what is used for French Press)
  2. Fill 2 cold brew bags with grinds and tie tightly
  3. Place bags in a large pitcher and add 4 cups cold water
  4. Let pitcher sit on counter for 12-24 hours
  5. Add 4 more cups of cold water
  6. Serve over ice and refrigerate the rest!

Cold Brew Smoothie

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I am a morning workout person and this smoothie is the perfect post-workout snack. The caffeine from the cold brew gives me a boost to tackle the day, the oats and almond butter keep me full and the spinach gives me some extra vitamins!

It is also so easy to make. Just throw everything in the blender and you have a delicious smoothie in 5 minutes.

Total Time Required: 5 minutes

Yields: 1 serving

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup cold brew (or regular iced coffee)
  • 1/2 cup milk (I used oat milk)
  • 1 banana (frozen or fresh)
  • Handful of spinach (fresh or frozen)
  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1 tablespoon almond butter
  • 1 cup ice
  • Sprinkle of cinnamon

Directions

  1. Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth
  2. Enjoy!

Banana Zucchini Chocolate Chip Bread

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What a mouthful! This recipe is packed with flavor from the banana and chocolate chips while the zucchini keeps it moist and light. There is enough batter for 2 loaves or 2 dozen muffins or in my case, one of each! The bread tastes like dessert but since it has a fruit AND a vegetable in it, I think it is perfectly reasonable to have it for breakfast or a snack, right?

Total Time Required: 1 hour – 1.5 hours

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Yields: 2 loaves or 2 dozen muffins

Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 cups sugar (reduce to 1 1/2 cups for less sweetness)
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Shred zucchini on the medium or large side of a stand grater
  3. Place shredded zucchini in a paper towel and gently squeeze out moisture just enough that the paper towel becomes wet but moisture is not dripping out much (you don’t want the zucchini dry but you also don’t want it too watery) — be sure to measure the zucchini after you squeeze out excess water!
  4. Beat eggs in a medium bowl
  5. Add sugar, oil, mashed bananas and vanilla and mix well
  6. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt
  7. Slowly whisk dry mixture into egg mixture
  8. Fold in zucchini with a rubber spatula
  9. Fold in chocolate chips
  10. Pour batter into greased 9×5 loaf pans or muffin tins
  11. For loaves, bake for 50-60 minutes and for muffins, bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

Individual Apple Streusel

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Do you ever want a good dessert but don’t want to make an entire sheet of brownies or a full batch of cookies? Well, good news! Today I am sharing a recipe for individual apple streusel that is ready in just about 30 minutes. Technically, 1 apple serves 2 people but you can easily half the recipe or, if you’re really ambitious, (and hungry) have it all yourself! Don’t skip on the vertical slices in the apple halves- they ensure that the coating and streusel permeate throughout the apple!

Total Time Required: 30 minutes

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Yields: 2 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 apple (Fuji, Pink Lady, Honeycrisp)
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup oats
  • 1 teaspoon almond butter
  • 1 teaspoon maple syrup
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Sprinkle of sea salt

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Peel the apple and remove the core
  3. Lay the apple cut-side down and carefully make 4-5 shallow vertical slices (about halfway through the apple- don’t cut all the way through!) on each apple half and place on a greased baking sheet
  4. Melt 1/2 tablespoon of butter and add 1 teaspoon of brown sugar. Drizzle or use a pastry brush to coat the outside of the apples
  5. Bake for 20 minutes
  6. Prepare the streusel by combining remaining butter and brown sugar, oats, almond butter, maple syrup, cinnamon and sea salt in a bowl
  7. Spoon streusel over top of apple halves (it is okay if some falls onto the pan) and bake for 5-8 minutes or until golden brown
  8. Serve with ice cream, whipped cream or by itself!

Baked Spaghetti Squash

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This baked spaghetti squash is one of my favorite recipes to make. It’s healthy but doesn’t taste too healthy which, in my opinion, is the perfect recipe. I like to include onion and broccoli but this would also be great with peppers, zucchini or any other vegetables you have at home. The Italian sausage gives it a ton of flavor and slight spice but you can easily sub in ground turkey or ground beef. The egg provides it a little extra protein while binding everything together and the melted mozzarella gives it a great crunchy top! I made this recipe to be half dairy-free so one side had dairy-free mozzarella which you can clearly see from the photos– turns out, it doesn’t melt quite the same!

This recipe would be great for dinner parties or to serve a crowd because it has to bake for an hour. You can prep any sides you’re serving with it or spend time with your guests and all you do is pull it out, let it rest for a few minutes and serve it warm! It also makes great leftovers! I made this to share with one other person and am stoked to have leftovers for lunch for the next few days.

Left- non-dairy mozzarella. Right- regular mozzarella

Total Time Required: 2 hours

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Yields: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 1 lb (4 links) Italian sausage, removed from casing (I used pre-cooked)
  • 1 cup onion, diced
  • 1 cup broccoli florets
  • 1 cup pizza sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 3 eggs, whisked
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella
  • Salt & pepper

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Carefully cut spaghetti squash in half long-ways (I first make small slices along the line I want to cut- makes it much easier!)
  3. Add olive oil, salt and pepper to cut-side of both halves
  4. Place spaghetti squash cut-side down on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes (lower oven temperature to 350 when the squash comes out)
  5. Heat olive oil in a large pan and add onion and broccoli
  6. Once onion and broccoli have browned slightly, add Italian sausage and cook for 3-5 minutes (if not pre-cooked, cook until no pink remains)
  7. Add pizza sauce, thyme, salt and pepper and allow to simmer for a few minutes
  8. Once the spaghetti squash is cool enough, use a fork to remove strands and place in a greased 9×12 baking dish
  9. Pour pizza sauce mixture over spaghetti squash and mix together
  10. Add in whisked eggs and combine thoroughly
  11. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top
  12. Bake for an hour at 350
  13. Allow to rest for a few minutes before slicing and enjoy!

Healthy Banana Oatmeal Cups

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These banana oatmeal cups come together in just a few minutes and use ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. The 3 main ingredients are oats, bananas and almond butter but to give it a little extra flavor I added chocolate chips, vanilla extract and cinnamon, plus a light sprinkle of sea salt on top because I love a sweet-salty combo. These cups would be great with dried cranberries or nuts if you’d prefer to sub out the chocolate chips! They make a great quick breakfast or easy snack.

Total Time Required: 25 minutes

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Yields: 12 cups

Ingredients

  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1 1/2 cups oats
  • 1/3 cup almond butter (or other nut butter)
  • 1/3 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Sea salt flakes

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Mash bananas with a fork
  3. Add bananas, oats, almond butter, chocolate chips, vanilla and cinnamon to a large bowl
  4. Fold together with a spatula until combined
  5. Evenly distribute mixture into greased muffin tin
  6. Sprinkle with sea salt
  7. Bake for 12-15 minutes

Chocolate Cake with Strawberries

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I made this cake for a friend’s birthday recently and it was a hit! The cake has a rich chocolate flavor so pairing it with fresh strawberries and whipped cream lightens it up quite a bit and gives it more of a summery feel.

Chocolate Cake

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time Required: 1 hour

Yields: 10-12 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 cups cane sugar
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon espresso powder
  • 1 cup milk (I used almond)
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup boiling water

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray
  2. Combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder in a large bowl (bowl of a stand mixer if available)
  3. Bring one cup of water to a boil
  4. While the water is heating, add milk, vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla to dry mixture and beat on medium speed until well combined
  5. Carefully mix in the boiling water
  6. Pour batter evenly into the two greased cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, rotating the cakes halfway through
  7. Allow cakes to cool for 10 minutes in the pan before transferring to cooling racks
  8. Frost when cakes are completely cool

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Total Time Required: 10 minutes

Yields: enough for 1 cake (potentially with extra)

Ingredients

  • 3 sticks butter (1 1/2 cup), softened
  • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 5 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup milk (I used almond)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder

Directions

  1. Cream together butter and cocoa powder until smooth
  2. Add sugar and milk and mix on high speed
  3. Add vanilla extract and espresso powder and mix until combined
  4. Frosting should be thick and hold form but should not dry
  5. Refrigerate until cake is ready to frost

Whipped Cream

Total Time Required: 10 minutes

Yields: 2 cups whipped cream

Ingredients

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons confectioners sugar

Directions

  1. Add heavy whipping cream to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until peaks form
  2. Beat in vanilla and confectioners sugar for additional 30 seconds
  3. Refrigerate and serve cold!

Frost cake once completely cool. Decorate with sliced strawberries.

Serve cake with sliced strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream.