Author: The Sunshine Inn Blog

Chef wanna be

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

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Peanut Butter Granola Bars

  • Servings: 16 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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A snack bar that is good, chewy, and healthy. A square was enough to fill that gap and felt like a sweet treat. (Vegan option below)

Ingredients

  • 2-1/2 cups of old fashioned oats
  • ¾ cup of peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup of honey or maple syrup. (both work well but the honey holds the bars together better)
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 45 grams of protein powder (I used chocolate)
  • 1 tbsp of mini chocolate chips
  • 1 tbsp of sliced almonds
  • 1 tbsp of chia seeds
  • 2 tbsp of pumpkin seeds

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. (if your peanut butter is solid at room temperature, heat it in microwave for 10-15 seconds before adding to the mix).
  3. Line a 9×9 inch baking dish or pan with parchment paper. (this makes it easier to remove your bars from the dish)
  4. Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and press firmly the mixture into the pan in an even layer. (the firmer you press the better the bars will stick together)
  5. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the centre is baked through and the edges are just starting to brown. (start checking at 14 minutes as all ovens are a little different)
  6. Place on a cooling rack and let cool completely before cutting into 16 squares with a very sharp knife..

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 171
  • Fat 7.7 g
  • Sugar 7.4 g
  • Carbohydrates 20.5 g
  • Protein 7.6 g
  • Fibre 2.5 g

Here are a few notes to help make this for different dietary needs

• You can use peanut free seed butter. You can use any nut or seed butter as long as you make sure it is at a drizzly consistently.

• Instead of eggs you can replace them with flax eggs. To make enough flax egg to replace the 2 eggs, mix 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed with 5 tbsp of water and let set for 5-10 minutes before adding to the recipe.

• You can omit the protein powder but that will alter the protein nutritional content. You can use unflavoured protein powder or any flavour you wish. If you omit the protein powder, increase the rolled oats by ½ cup.

As you can see there are a lot of possible variations on this recipe. Change the seeds, add nuts, less seeds more chocolate chips, no chocolate chips but chopped peanuts instead. We could go on and on but I’d rather stop and let you have fun and make it your own.

Sugar Free Sweet Ice Tea

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Sugar Free Sweet Ice Tea

  • Servings: 6 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Nothing says summer quite like sweet ice tea. To a diabetic or someone that is watching their calorie intake, this one is off their list. A standard sweet ice tea is 30 grams of sugar per 8 ounce glass. Here is a version that you can have without the guilt.

Ingredients

  • 8 bags of black tea
  • 4 cups of boiling water
  • 2 cups of cold water
  • 2/3 cup of Splenda
  • 1/3 cup of Stevia blend (heaping)
  • 1/8 tsp of baking soda

Directions

  1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil.
  2. Take off the heat and add the 8 tea bags and stir.
  3. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
  4. Removed the tea bags, squeeze gently.
  5. Add 1/8 tsp of baking soda and stir
  6. Add the Splenda and Stevia and stir until completely dissolved.
  7. Add the 2 cups of cold water and stir.
  8. Put in fridge to finish cooling.

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 12
  • Fat 0 g
  • Sugar 0 g
  • Carbohydrates 12 g
  • Protein 0 g
  • Fibre 0 g

Is this identical to southern sweet ice tea, no. But it is a good second cousin to it. The stevia cuts the after taste of the Splenda. You can still enjoy the flavour without worrying about the sugar content.

You can dress it up with lemon, orange slices, mint, or any combination that you like. After all, what good is a recipe if you can’t have fun and make it your own.

Oatmeal Muffins

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Oatmeal Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Muffins
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Who doesn’t like muffins? I know I do but when I look at the calories on the store bought or coffee shop muffins, I have to do a hard pass. I came across this recipe and thought how bad can this be? Well to my great surprise, they are quite tasty.

Ingredients

  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup of skim milk
  • ¼ cup of unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1-1/3 cup of all purpose flour (I use unbleached white flour)
  • ¾ cup of oatmeal
  • 1/3 cup of stevia blend
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ cup of unsweetened dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup of chopped walnuts

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl beat together the eggs, milk and apple sauce.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine flour, oatmeal, stevia, baking powder and salt.
  4. If you are adding fruit and nuts, lightly coat with about 1 tablespoon of flour so they won’t stick to the bottom of the muffin or batter.
  5. Gently stir the flour and fruit mixtures into the egg batter until combined, do not overmix the batter so your muffins will stay light and fluffy.
  6. Fill muffins tins about 2/3 of the way up.
  7. Bake at 400 for about 8 minutes then lower your oven temperature to 350 and bake for another 8 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.
  8. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 116
  • Fat 2.7 g
  • Sugar 3.8 g
  • Carbohydrates 26.9 g
  • Protein 4.51 g
  • Fibre 1.43 g

You can store these at room temperature covered for 3-4 days. You can also freeze them in a freezer bag for up to one month. You can thaw them on a wire rack or reheat the frozen muffin in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.

I was generally surprised that I didn’t taste the stevia. You can use Splenda which is a little sweeter but some people say they can taste the Splenda.

You can change the fruit, nut, decorate it if you feel like it. This version is great for all diabetes but feel free to have fun and make it your own.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

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Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

  • Servings: 20 cookies
  • Difficulty: Easy
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A young lady I know, who is dating a young pre-diabetic young chef, wanted to make him a treat. She scoured the internet to find a recipe that she could make that would be tasty and diabetic friendly. She came up with this great recipe. Hope you enjoy. I tried it and let me say that it will go into office pot lucks and even as a treat at home.

Ingredients

  • 1-1/4 cups of old fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup of white flour
  • 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
  • 1 tsp of baking powder
  • 1 tsp of cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp of salt
  • 4 tbsp of melted light margarine
  • 1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup of maple syrup
  • 1 tsp of vanilla
  • 1/2 cup of unsweetened chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together oats, flours, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and set aside.
  3. In a smaller bowl, mix together melted margarine, peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla until well combined.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, folding in the chocolate chips last.
  5. Using a small cookie scoop, drop 1inch cookie dough balls onto a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten the tops with the back of a spoon or use your fingers, making sure the cookies are still intact. You should end up with about 20 small cookies.
  6. Bake cookies for about 12 minutes. They will look very soft but will firm up as they cool. Keep them on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 79
  • Fat 3.3 g
  • Sugar 5.1 g
  • Carbohydrates 8 g
  • Protein 2.1 g
  • Fibre 1.3 g

This was recipe was so easy it was sinful not to try making it. The original recipe called for coconut oil but neither young lady or I like that so she used butter and I used margarine. The calorie and fat content are what I used. If you don’t mind a denser cookie, you could use only whole wheat flour. It would be even healther and if even better for the diabetic as it will not spike your sugars. But being half and half is not a bad option.

If you don’t or can’t find sugar free chocolate chips, they sell sugar free chocolate bars, which is what I had and I just chopped it up and put that in. Just as decadent. You can also use chunky peanut butter. You can add some nuts and reduce the chocolate for a variation. This is when you can have fun and make it your own. If you do, please give us feedback on your version.

Quick Chicken Pho

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Quick Chicken Pho

  • Servings: 4 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Recently, we went to a restaurant and we ordered two of these Chicken Pho soups. Well, it was outrageously priced. It was good but dang it was expensive. So I thought, what the heck lets make it ourselves. This is what I came up with.

Ingredients

  • ¾ inch section of peeled ginger
  • 4 medium bok choy
  • 1 small bunch cilantro sprigs
  • 1-1/2 tsp of coriander seeds
  • 1 onion sliced thin
  • 1 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 whole clove
  • 4 cups of low-sodium chicken broth or bone broth (I used chicken bone broth)
  • 2 cups of water
  • 1 lb of chicken breasts
  • ½ tsp of sea salt
  • 150 g or 5 ounces of flat rice noodles
  • 3 tsp of fish sauce
  • ½ tsp raw sugar
  • Pepper to taste (I used white pepper)

Directions

  1. Prepare the rice noodles as indicated on the package, drain and rince under cold water to stop the cooking.
  2. Slice chicken into thin strips.
  3. In a large dutch oven or pot, heat oil.
  4. Add in onion, clove, coriander seeds, cilantro sprig stems and heat thoroughly.
  5. Add broth and water.
  6. Add chicken and bok choy to the broth and heat for about 15 minutes.
  7. Add fish sauce, pepper, salt and sugar.
  8. Rince rice noodles under warm water and divide into four bowls.
  9. Pour soup over the noodles and add the chopped cilantro.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1.55 cup

  • Calories 357
  • Fat 16 g
  • Sugar 4 g
  • Carbohydrates 31 g
  • Protein 32 g
  • Fibre 3 g

This recipe is very versatile. There are so many options you can do. If you want it spicy, you can add chili peppers or jalapenos. As you see, I added bean sprouts because that is how they served it at the restaurant. Low calorie and good fibre. I used bok choy but you can use any vegetable you like. Such as, carrots, broccoli, string beans. You want higher protein, you can use edamame beans. You can even alter this to become a beef soup using beef bone broth and of course beef. This recipe holds so many possibilities all it needs is for you to have fun and make it your own.

Spicy Beef Stir Fry

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Spicy Beef Stir Fry

  • Servings: 4 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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This is a quick 30 minute beef stir fry. Great way to make a nice quick healthy meal during the work week.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb beef top sirloin steak cut into thin strips
  • 1 tbsp minced fresh gingerroot
  • 3 garlic cloves minced, divided
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ¾ tsp salt, divided
  • 1 c light coconut milk
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp Sriracha chili sauce
  • ½ tsp grated lime zest
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 2 tbsp canola oil, divided
  • 2 large sweet red pepper cut into thin slices
  • ½ large red onion cut into thin slices
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and cut into thin slices
  • 4 c fresh baby spinach
  • 2 green onions, sliced thin
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, toss beef with ginger, 2 garlic cloves, pepper and ½ tsp salt. Let stand15 minutes.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk coconut milk, sugar, chili sauce, lime zest, lime juice and remaining salt until blended.
  3. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat, add beef and stir fry until no longer pink. 2-3 minutes. Remove from pan.
    4. 4.Stir-fry red pepper, onion, jalapeno and remaining clove of garlic in remaining 1 tbsp of oil until vegetables are crisp-tender 2-3 minutes.
  4. Stir in coconut milk mixture, heat through then add spinach and beef until spinach is wilted and beef is heated throughout, stirring occasionally.
    5. 6.Sprinkle with green onions and cilantro.

Nutrition Per Serving, 3/4 Cup

  • Sugar 10 g
  • Carbohydrates 15 g
  • Calories 312
  • Fat 16 g
  • Protein 26 g
  • Fibre 2 g

This recipe is very versatile. If you want it spicier you can add more Sriracha chili sauce or leave in seeds from the jalapeno. You can make this with any meat.

As you see in the picture, I served it with barley, but a side can be anything from couscous, mashed potatoes, barley, pasta, rice, quinoa or nothing at all. You can add more vegetables to this recipe and thicken the sauce with a little flour. This is where you can have fun and make it your own.

Blueberry Cornbread Muffins

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Blueberry Cornbread Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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These blueberry cornbread muffins are made with healthy options like honey and blueberries. And who can’t use more muffin recipes that are healthy and just delicious

Ingredients

  • 1 c all purpose flour (I use unbleached white flour)
  • 1 c cornmeal
  • ½ tsp of salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 c milk (I used no fat protein Lantancia milk)
  • ¼ c olive oil
  • ¼ c honey
  • 1 c blueberries

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, salt, baking power and lemon zest. Whisk until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
  3. Combine the egg, milk, olive oil and honey in a second bowl, then whisk until smooth.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just barely combined.
  5. Add the blueberries and fold in using a rubber spatula
  6. Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups.
  7. Put in oven and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  8. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 regular sized muffin

  • Calories 162
  • Fat 1 g
  • Sugar 7 g
  • Carbohydrates 23 g
  • Protein 3 g
  • Fibre 2 g

If you don’t have lemon zest available, you can substitute ½ tsp lemon extract or 2 tbsp of lemon juice. Both whole wheat flour and gluten free flour work well for these muffins.

If using whole wheat, increase the honey to 1/3 cup. To use frozen blueberries, defrost in a colander under cool running water, shake to remove as much moisture as possible, then pat dry with paper towels before adding to the batter. You can add some raw sugar for a little crunch.

These are great at room temperature or you can heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. If you change the recipe while having fun and making it your own, let me know. I’m always willing to try new things.

Healthy Banana Muffins

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Healthy Banana Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Muffins, who doesn’t like muffins? If I go anywhere near a donut shop, I’m walking out with a muffin. Even their healthier versions are still so high in sugar and fat thus making it not a great choice. And I’m sorry, but there are only so many bran muffins a girl can have. So here, a low fat, low sugar muffin that tastes great and you won’t feel guilty having.

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp of unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1/3 cup of honey
  • 1 cup of mashed ripe bananas, about 3 medium
  • 1/4 cup of low fat milk, I used Lantancia high protein fat free.
  • 1 tsp of vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp of baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp of salt
  • 1-1/2 cups of flour (I used unbleached white flour)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl, put apple sauce, honey, mashed bananas, milk and vanilla in bowl and whisk to combine.
  3. Add the eggs and whisk thoroughly.
  4. Spinkle the cinnamon, baking soda and salt over the wet ingredients. Until well combined.
  5. Add the flour to the bowl and stir with a large spoon or spatula until just combined. Be careful to not overmix.
  6. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin, about 2/3 but if you use a thick silicon liner like I do, then it’s almost full.
  7. Bake for 20-25 min or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the centre. Mini muffins will take about 10-12 minutes.
  8. Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes, then put them on cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 regular sized muffin

  • Calories 144
  • Fat 5 g
  • Sugar 10 g
  • Carbohydrates 23 g
  • Protein 3 g
  • Fibre 2 g

Lots of little extras here. You can make 12 regular sized muffins or 36 mini muffins. To store them, put in airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days or 4-5 in fridge. They also freeze well. Once completely cooled, then you can put them in an airtight zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Thaw and serve at room temperature. It was suggested that if you put the muffins diagonally on the cooling rack, they reach room temperature quicker.

And now for the having fun part, you can add chopped nuts, chocolate chips, fresh or frozen blueberries, I swapped the butter for apple sauce but you can use 4 tbsp of butter for a richer taste.

You can make it with wheat flour but this will make them healthier oh and a little heavier. Gluten free use 1:1 gluten free flour blend for the flour. You can make this egg free by using 2 tbsp of flaxseed meal and 5 tbsp of water. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients. (I’ve never tried it but I hear it works). The riper your bananas, the sweeter it is. It is also a little higher in sugars and glucides.

So as you see, you can have fun and make these your own.

Low-Fat Broccoli Cheddar Soup

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Low-Fat Broccoli Cheddar Soup

  • Servings: 6 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Soup season is upon us. Nothing quite like a great bowl of soup to take the chill out of your bones. I go from standards like vegetable soups, to chicken noodle, to beef barley and well cream style soups. Now when you think of creamy soups, you think fat, rich, flavourful. I found this recipe that is both delicious, rich and yet reduced in fat.

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 leeks, white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and sliced thin
  • 1-1/2 lbs of broccoli florets chopped, stems peeled sliced thin
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup of water
  • 1 tbsp of Dijon mustard
  • ¾ cup of fat-free evaporated milk
  • 4 ounces of extra-sharp cheddar cheese shredded (about 1 cup)
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat, add leeks and broccoli stems and cook until just beginning to soften, about 8 minutes.
  2. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  3. Stir in broth and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until stems are soft, about 8 minutes.
  4. Add broccoli florets, cover and simmer until tender, about 5 minutes.
  5. Transfer soup to blender and puree until completely smooth, about 30 seconds. (Do this in smaller batches if need be to not have your blender overflow with hot liquid)
  6. Put back in pot add mustard, milk, and cheese and heat on low until cheese is melted.
  7. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Nutrition Per Serving

  • Calories 217
  • Fat 12 g
  • Sugar 7 g
  • Carbohydrates 18 g
  • Protein 13 g
  • Fibre 4 g

This was a great way to have a nice warm creamy soup without the fat and calories. Using leeks instead of onions allows the flavour of the broccoli to come through while providing color, and silkiness to the soup. By using the extra sharp cheddar, the distinct cheese flavour is brought to the forefront. You need to remember that when you add the cheese, you can not bring it to a boil or it will separate and make the soup greasy. Same goes for reheating. Using the fat free evaporated milk helps give that creamy texture without the fat. Fat free regular milk won’t work. The cheese, well, that is where you have lots of choices. You can have sharp, jalepeno, Havarti, or even mild, this is where you have fun and make it your own,

Extra tip: preparing your leeks.
Cut off the tough dark green portion of the leek and discard. Slice the remaining white and light green portion in half lengthwise. Submerge halved leeks in cold water and agitate to remove any dirt. Once the leaks are clean, remove them from the water, pat them dry with paper towels and chop them as desired.

Hearty Tuscan Bean Stew

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Hearty Tuscan Bean Stew

  • Servings: 9 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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This makes a great fall stew. If you grow your own kale, this is a hearty vegetable that grows well into late fall. We found this recipe to be hearty, filling and cozy.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb dried cannellini beans (about 2 cups), rinsed and picked over
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
  • 6 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (we used thick cut bacon)
  • 1 large onion, chopped medium (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 2 medium celery ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3/4 cup)
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 cup)
  • 8 medium garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
  • 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 3 cups water
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 bunch kale (about 1 lb), stems trimmed and leaves chopped into 1-inch pieces (about 8 cups loosely packed)
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained and rinsed
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. In nonstick pan, heat oil and cook bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon but keep the fat and oil in the pan.
  2. Add onion, carrots and celery and cook on medium high heat until onion is translucent. Usually about 5 minutes.
  3. Add garlic and cook until it starts to brown.
  4. Place all the ingredients into a slow cooker.
  5. Cook on high for 6 hours or slow for 8 hours.

Nutrition Per Serving

  • Calories 468
  • Fat 18 g
  • Sugar 6 g
  • Carbohydrates 6.25 g
  • Protein 19.25 g
  • Fibre 4.65 g

This was a fun experiment for me. I was trying to find a way to use up the kale. There were three people at the table, who are not the biggest fans of kale and they liked this. I used a mixture of green and purple kale. You could use collard greens, or even swiss chard. This is where you can have fun and make it your own.