So… my New Year’s Resolution of eating healthier in 2013 is definitely going well! Can ya tell? Hey, I’m using whole wheat flour, and chocolate in moderation is good for ya, right?

If you are up for indulging in some delicious chocolate chip cookies over the weekend, you have got to try this recipe! This is definitely my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe EVER!

Soft and gooey chocolate chip cookies… it doesn’t get much better than that.

Now I can’t take the credit for this fabulous recipe… I’ve got to give it to Nestle. On the back of the Nestle Toll House chocolate chips package is a recipe for chocolate chip cookies. I do tweak mine a bit to make them a little “healthier” and they always turn out so delicious! And if I can make these turn out so good, you can too!

The Best EVER Chocolate Chip Cookies

* Here’s the direct link to this recipe if you want to print or save it.

I also opted to sub all whole wheat flour for the all-purpose flour called for.  And they surprisingly still turned out fantastic! I didn’t add nuts to my cookies either. I have a not so nut lovin’ hubby in my household.

I’ve definitely learned throughout the years that some of the most basic recipes, can end up being the ones that you make over and over and over again. And this is one of those for me!

Enjoy!

I am feeling a bit under the weather today. OK, a lot under the weather today. I have a sore throat, watery eyes, congestion… yes, wonderful symptoms. So I am planning to take it easy this weekend and get some much-needed rest.

If you also have these symptoms or have someone in your household with similar symptoms, you should try out this comforting tea recipe. And the best part, it’s easy to make and only requires a couple of ingredients. It also seems to really help if you are dealing with a sore throat.

Comforting & Easy Ginger Tea Recipe:

* Grate 2 teaspoons of ginger
* Boil 2 cups of water
* Put the grated ginger into the boiling water
* Let steep for 10 minutes or so
* Strain water and ginger mixture into a large mug (use a fine mesh strainer if you have one)
* Add fresh lemon juice and honey (or another sweetener of your choice)
* Enjoy!

Note that this ginger tea is very strong and may burn a little when swallowed. I actually don’t mind the strong taste. However, if you do, you can always use less ginger or add more water and adjust as needed.

OK, so I am about to share with you the most delicious, gluten-free, Paleo friendly cornbread recipe! This stuff is so good… in fact, my hubby and I managed to eat the whole pan in a matter of 24 hours. It’s very addicting!

The funny thing is that I never set out to make cornbread. I was actually trying to make pie crust… yep, pie crust. When the weirdly shaped pie crust came out of the oven… well, I sadly knew I had failed at trying to concoct pie crust. However, once I tasted my odd creation, I knew that with a few minor changes, I could turn this pie crust into some amazing cornbread!

Gluten-Free Paleo Honey Cornbread

Ingredients:

1/4 cup almond butter
2 tablespoons Coconut oil
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 teaspoon liquid Stevia (if you don’t have this on hand, you may want to add a bit more honey)
1 cup almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

Melt almond butter with coconut oil in the microwave, then stir in vanilla extract, eggs, honey and Stevia. Mix dry ingredients (almond flour, baking soda and salt) in a separate bowl. Combine wet and dry ingredients together. Stir well.  Pour into an 8×8 greased (or lined with parchment paper) baking dish or pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Side note, you could totally add in other ingredients you may have on hand to give this cornbread a different taste. For instance, you could add jalapenos and shredded cheese to change things up and give the cornbread a little kick!

I LOVE enchiladas… they are so delicious and always seem to hit the spot. So of course, I had to find a way to incorporate them into my new way of eating. Since I’m not eating grains, I had to get creative as I needed something other than tortillas to wrap up my enchiladas with. I looked in my fridge and noticed a big head of cabbage… perfect!

Simple Cabbage Enchiladas

Ingredients:

1 head of cabbage
Shredded Chicken (I used leftovers from a rotisserie chicken we had)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
2 (4 ounce) cans of chopped green chiles
Fresh cilantro
Salt & pepper (to taste)
shredded cheese (optional)

For the Sauce:

Add the chicken broth to a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and mix in the sour cream and green chiles, heat thoroughly but do not boil and make sure to stir often. Let simmer for just a bit and the sauce should thicken. Season with salt and pepper.

For the Enchiladas:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Peel the cabbage leaves – make sure to peel them gently, as you don’t want them to tear. I ran the cabbage under warm water as I was peeling. This helped a ton. Throw the cabbage leaves into the pot of boiling water for a couple of minutes. Remove and set on a paper towel to dry.

Mix the shredded chicken with chopped fresh cilantro and shredded cheese (optional). I also seasoned well with salt & pepper.

Spread the enchilada sauce in the bottom of an 8×8 baking dish. Then take your cabbage leaves and place the chicken mixture inside of them and roll up. Place each cabbage roll in the baking dish. Once done, pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over them. I also topped with shredded cheese.

Bake at 350° for about 20 to 30 minutes.

Top with anything you please. Salsa, hot sauce, jalapenos, avocados, cilantro, more cheese, freshly squeezed lime juice, sour cream and the list goes on! Enchiladas are so fun to make because you really can get creative and definitely make use of the veggies and pantry items you already have on hand.

* Please note that I have started incorporating dairy products back into my diet, so that’s why I decided to concoct a sour cream enchilada sauce. You can always substitute this sauce for more of a red sauce if you are trying to stay away from dairy products.

I LOVE grilling season! Seriously… everything tastes so much better when it’s grilled! With that being said, I thought I’d share this flavorful marinade for chicken drumsticks! Good stuff! …And keep in mind that this marinade would also be great on chicken breasts, wings and more!

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon dried oregano (Fresh would be even better!)
3 Garlic Cloves, pressed or minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 to 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
A few grinds of freshly ground black pepper
8 to 12 chicken drumsticks

* Also, for a variation of this marinade, you could instead sub lime juice for the lemon juice and fresh cilantro for the oregano. So good too!

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients (through the black pepper) in a bowl. Pour marinade into a large Ziploc bag and add the chicken drumsticks. Marinate for at least 30 minutes. We marinated our chicken drumsticks for 24 hours and they ended up being super flavorful, so it’s definitely worth taking the time to marinate them for as long as possible. Then throw those bad boys on the grill!

* Recipe adapted from here.

I am just in love with this super simple, delicious and creative recipe idea that I spotted over on Yummy Mummy… and yes, her pictures are far better than mine!

Basically you take a spaghetti squash, cut in half length-wise, drizzle olive oil on both sides, then bake at 400 degrees cut side down for about 35 minutes. Take out, let cool for a teeny bit and then take a fork to pull up all of the “spaghetti”.

Now you can top with sauce, meatballs, Romano cheese, basil… basically anything that you would normally top pasta with. Once finished, throw back in the oven and bake for just a few minutes. Seriously, so good and so easy!

…And if you are looking for a yummy meatball and sauce recipe, I share one here. Enjoy!

My daughter, Piper, absolutely LOVED this meal!

Ummm… I somehow concocted these seriously, oh so addicting, what I’m going to call, Sweet & Salty Paleo Bites! I was trying to make grain-free granola bars that were actually edible and ended up with this:

I got lucky! These are amazing. Sweet and salty all in one bite! It doesn’t get much better than that.

Oh and did I mention that they are super easy to make and you can substitute various ingredients with items you already have on hand. Plus, no baking is needed. Easy Peasy!

Sweet & Salty No-Bake Paleo Bites

Ingredients:

Nuts & Seeds
(keep in mind that you can substitute the nuts and seeds listed below for anything you have on hand.)
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup pistachios (I used salted)
1 cup pecans
1 cup sunflower seeds

Other Ingredients
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped – Optional (or choose another dried fruit you have on hand)
1 3oz chocolate bar with at least 70% Cocoa, smashed/chopped
(I used an Endangered Species chocolate bar with 88% Cocoa)
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup almond butter
1/3 to 1/2 cup honey (or Agave Nectar)
1 tsp salt

Directions:

Mix all of the nuts and seeds in a medium bowl. Take out about half and blend in a Vitamix or blender until they are finely ground. With the other half, chop or do what I do (put in a Ziploc bag and pound with a meat tenderizer). Put both sets of nuts and seeds in a bowl. Add the shredded coconut, chopped cherries, chocolate and salt to the nut mixture. Stir to combine.

In a small saucepan, over low heat, combine the honey, coconut oil and almond butter. Then turn up the heat and bring to a boil for about 1 minute, then take off heat. Pour this hot mixture over the nut and seed mix. Stir until all ingredients are combined.

Firmly press the sweet & salty mix into a greased 8×8 pan (or line with parchment paper). Let cool for about 15 minutes and then, again, press the mixture down into the pan very firmly. Place pan in fridge for at least 2 hours to chill. The longer they chill, the better tasting they will be!

Enjoy!