Shrimp Skewers on the Grill!

Hey everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and got to enjoy the beautiful fall weather! This Fall, I have been working later hours at work and it has been harder to make time for a workout AND make different clean meals each night. Therefore, I have been creating easy recipes that can be made in no time! This weeks menu included shrimp ka-bobs which I am sharing below. They are healthy, high in protein and you can basically add any vegetables you want for variety!  These ka-bobs in particular are made on the grill so there is also little mess at all.  Along with the ka-bobs, I also made a baked sweet potato on the side for a carb.  


Directions:  Soak the skewers in water a minimum two hours so they do not burn. Wash and cut up all the vegetables into 1 – 1 1/2 inch cubes. I love to use zucchini, red onion, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms and red & green peppers. Toss all the veggies in a little olive oil and sea salt. Next, de-vein, clean and wash the shrimp. Toss in a little olive oil and sea salt. Slide onto skewers and..Ta-Da! Toss each skewer onto the grill. Turn every few minutes.  You will be able to tell when they are done by looking at the shrimp.



Sunday Funday! – Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pasta

Hello everyone! So excited for my second post here on my blog :). Today is my favorite day of the week… Sunday Funday! The tradition in my family, for as long as I can remember, is Pasta Sunday. Over the years I have tried to recreate some of my favorite dishes, so I can indulge while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I am still on a pumpkin kick…so today I made Pumpkin Pasta! This is not a fully clean dish, but I basically took Rachel Ray’s Pumpkin Pasta dish and cleaned it up a bit so I could enjoy it guilt-free! The original recipe calls for heavy cream. I have substituted this with low-fat half and half.  The recipe is below! 
1 lb. chicken or turkey sausage – I used two packages of “Think Thin Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage” pictured below. Each link is only 70 calories and soo tasty! 
•                2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
•                5 cloves garlic, chopped
•                1 medium onion, finely chopped
•                4 to 6 sprigs sage leaves, chopped, about 2 Tbs. (do not chop fine)
•                1 ½ cups chicken broth, canned or paper container
•                1 cup canned pumpkin
•                1/2 cup low-fat half and half
•                1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
•                1/2 tsp. ground or freshly grated nutmeg
•                sea salt
•                black pepper
•                1 pound 100% whole wheat pasta 
•                grated Parmigiano cheese
Directions
Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Take each sausage link out of the casing and break into small pieces.  Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and brown the turkey sausage in it. Transfer sausage to paper towel lined plate. Clean skillet then add the remaining tablespoon oil, and then the garlic and onion. Saute 3 to 5 minutes until the onions are translucent.
Add sage to the pan.  Add chicken broth and pumpkin and stir to combine, stirring sauce until it comes to a bubble. Return sausage to pan, reduce heat, and stir in cream. Season the sauce with the cinnamon and nutmeg, and salt and pepper, to taste. Simmer mixture 5 to 10 minutes to thicken sauce.
Return drained pasta to the pot you cooked it in. Pour the sausage pumpkin sauce over the pasta. Toss over low heat for 1 minute. Lastly, put some grated cheese on top once it is served. 
Enjoy! 


Everything Pumpkin – Almond Flour Pumpkin Muffins :)

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog!  This is my first post! Everyone that knows me well, knows I love to always eat healthy. Having grown up in an Italian family, I have been infused with a passion for cooking and am always trying to make healthy yet delicious meals.  I have taken this passion and applied it to cleaning up some of the hardest Italian dishes which I have decided to share with you on my blog. Being that it is Fall and I am obsessed with anything and everything pumpkin, today’s post features my delicious Pumpkin Muffins. These are made with almond flour and are great for a healthy snack anytime!  I never use white sugar in any of my recipes so instead, today, I have substituted honey.  The recipe is below 🙂 

2 large eggs
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/3 cup raw honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)
1 tablespoon flax seeds (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin, honey, oil and vanilla.  Stir the mixture to get the pumpkin smooth.  In a separate mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, baking soda, salt, spices and seeds together. 
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix till well combined and smooth.
Pour the mixture into muffin cups/pan until they are about 2/3 full, smoothing the tops.
Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.



Delicious 🙂