Some like it hot! As your summer heats up, spice up your burger game with these turkey piri piri burgers. Ground turkey is a fairly neutral tasting lean meat that easily takes on the savory profile of the spices you add to it so it’s the perfect base for a spiced burger that brings the heat to your table.

This burger uses the heat of piri piri peppers in combination with cumin, coriander, and garlic to round out the taste profile. Piri piri peppers are a medium hot spiced pepper falling above a jalapeño on the heat scale and just below habanero. If you can’t find piri piri pepper or piri piri hot sauce, use Tabasco or a habanero based hot sauce for heat.

For a healthy and delicious low carb alternative to a bun, grill up some red bell pepper halves until lightly charred but still somewhat firm so they remain hand holdable. Grilling the peppers brings out a sweet smoky flavor that is the perfect complement to the piri piri pepper and spices in the burger. Other non-bun alternatives you could use include lightly grilled slices of summer squash, zucchini, eggplant, sweet potato, tomato ends, or lettuce wraps. Top these off with spicy mayo, cilantro, and red onion for a tasty turkey burger!

Turkey Piri Piri Burgers

Calories 403, Protein 23g, Total Carbs 8g, Fat 31g

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 15 min

Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey (or chicken)
• 1 teaspoon minced piri piri peppers, piri piri hot sauce, or hot chili powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced (about 2 cloves)
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
• ¼ teaspoon coriander
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Burger Toppings:

• Spicy mayo (combine ½ cup mayonnaise with 1 teaspoon hot piri piri pepper sauce or habanero hot sauce)
• ½ cup chopped cilantro
• ¼ red onion, sliced into rings
• 4-5 red bell peppers cored and cut into large burger size chunks (about half a pepper per each side of the bun) and grilled lightly

Preparation Instructions:

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium high heat.
2. Combine the ground turkey with the spices until well mixed.
3. Form into 4-5 burgers and grill about 5 minutes per side until cooked through.
4. While burgers are cooking, prepare the toppings and set aside.
5. Grill the red pepper pieces until lightly charred on each side but still firm, about 2-3 minutes per side.
6. Assemble burger with toppings between the grilled pepper pieces.

The post Turkey Piri Piri Burgers appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Take a summer food vacation to Greece by combining all of the signature flavors in a tasty, grilled burger! These burgers can easily be made with beef, bison, or even lamb for a truly authentic experience. Ground meat is combined with the salty tang of feta cheese and pimientos, which are simply small pieces of red cherry pepper cured in brine. If you can’t find pimientos, you can use roasted red peppers either made fresh or from a jar that are diced into small bits.

Tzatziki sauce is a condiment used often in Greek cuisine. I’ve used many of the same components in the traditional sauce to make a complimentary cucumber yogurt sauce for these burgers that provides a burst of extra creamy deliciousness to highlight the cultural tasting experience.

Zucchini slices are lightly brushed with olive oil and grilled for a healthy low carb alternative to a bun. Other non-bun alternatives you could use include lightly grilled slices of summer squash, eggplant, sweet potato, tomato ends, or lettuce wraps. Finish topping these burgers with the cucumber yogurt sauce, spinach, tomato, and Kalamata olives for a uniquely Greek inspired grill burger.

Greek Pimiento Burgers

Calories 191, Protein 18g, Total Carbs 5g, Fat 11g

Prep time: 20 min

Cook time: 15 min

Serves: 6 as burgers, 12 as sliders

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef
• ¼ cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons pimiento, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
• ¼ teaspoon coriander
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Cucumber Yogurt Sauce:

• ½ cup plain unsweetened Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup shredded cucumber
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon garlic, minced
• Pinch of salt

Burger Toppings:

• Kalamata olives, chopped
• Baby spinach
• Tomato slices
• Zucchini, sliced ¼ inch thick and grilled lightly to use as a “bun”

Preparation Instructions:

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat.
2. Combine the ground beef, feta, pimiento, salt, pepper, and coriander until well mixed.
3. Form into 6 patties or 12 sliders depending on the size of your “buns.”
4. Grill about 4-5 minutes per side until desired doneness.
5. While burgers are cooking, stir together the yogurt sauce ingredients and prepare additional toppings.
6. Grill zucchini about 2-3 minutes per side so they are still firm.
7. Assemble burger with toppings and cucumber yogurt sauce to serve.

The post Greek Pimiento Burgers appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Lighten up your summer eating with this chickpea based vegetarian burger. Mixed up with a compliment of Italian seasonings, these chickpea patties bring a bit of pizzaz to your table while providing protein and fiber. One of the problems I’ve come across when making vegetarian burgers is that they tend to be more of a challenge to hold together because the legume base is a lower fat content than using meat. In order to allow this burger to be pressed together and remain moist, ground flaxseed and olive oil are added. Flax is a great emulsifier and helps to bind the chickpeas together. The olive oil also helps to keep these from feeling too crumbly and gives the burgers a pleasant texture.

Harness the flavor of a Caprese salad by topping the chickpea burger with a slice of fresh mozzarella and pesto. Sandwich this between two ends of a tomato for a unique presentation and a healthy low carb alternative to a bun. Other non-bun alternatives you could use include lightly grilled slices of zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, sweet potato, or lettuce wraps. Any way you wrap it, this easy vegetarian burger leaves you feeling light on your feet and ready to tackle that next workout.

Caprese Chickpea Burgers

Calories 288, Protein 15g, Total Carbs 22g, Fat 17g

Prep time: 20 min

Cook time: 15 min

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and mashed
• ¼ red onion, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal (ground flax)
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
• Pinch of oregano
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Burger Toppings:

• Mozzarella cheese, sliced
• Prepared pesto sauce
• 4 tomatoes, sliced and cored to use both ends as a “bun.” Use extra slices for garnish.

Preparation Instructions:

1. Preheat a sauté pan to medium high heat with a small amount of olive oil.
2. Combine the chickpeas with flax, onion, spices, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil until well mixed. You may need to use your hands to finish mashing the chickpeas completely. Check if the mixture will hold together when squeezed by hand. You may need to add 1 additional tablespoon of oil for patties to hold together properly.
3. Form into 4 patties.
4. Cook about 5-8 minutes per side until lightly browned on both sides.
5. While burgers are cooking prepare toppings.
6. Assemble burger with pesto, mozzarella, and place between the tomato “bun” to serve.

The post Caprese Chickpea Burgers appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Summer sun leads to relaxing summer grill-outs with friends and family. Change up your barbequed burger routine with a little something unexpected. Using meats that are not just beef for your patties brings both flavor and variety to your table. Ginger scallion pork burgers combine ground pork with the zestiness of garlic, ginger, and scallions along with the delicious sweet salty tang of soy sauce for a unique Asian flavor.

Cut the carbs and lighten up these burgers by using vegetables instead of the bun. This burger is fantastic wrapped with a few large pieces of butter lettuce. Using a couple of pieces of the lettuce allows you to wrap it burrito style to hold the multiple topping options. If you enjoy sliders, sauté a few rounds of sweet potato to use in place of the bun.

The light sweetness of the sweet potato compliments the ginger soy combo of these burgers quite nicely. Other non-bun alternatives you could use include lightly grilled slices of zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, or tomato ends. Whether you prefer to use a bun or a vegetable alternative, these burgers are a perfect palate pleaser!

Ginger Scallion Pork Burgers

Calories 375, Protein 24g, Total Carbs 24g, Fat 23g

Prep time: 20 min

Cook time: 15 min

Serves: 4 as burgers (or 8 sliders)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground pork
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon tamari soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons ginger, minced
• 2 scallions, sliced
• ¼ – ½ teaspoon red chili flakes

Burger Toppings:

• 4 slices pineapple, grilled slightly
• 1 sliced avocado
• ½ red onion, sliced
• 1 sweet potato, sliced ¼” thick
• Lettuce leaves
• Prepared jalapeño coleslaw, if desired

Preparation Instructions:

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat.
2. Combine the ground pork, garlic, tamari, ginger, scallions, and chili flakes until well mixed.
3. Form into 4 patties or 8 sliders depending on if you’re serving as lettuce wraps or the size of your sweet potato “bun.”
4. Grill burgers and pineapple slices about 4-5 minutes per side until desired doneness.
5. While burgers are cooking, heat a sauté pan with a small amount of oil. Cook the sweet potato slices a few minutes on each side just until they are lightly browned but not soft.
6. Assemble burgers on a plate with toppings.

The post Ginger Scallion Pork Burgers appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Earthy and vibrant, this creamy soup gets its texture from pureéing the softened chestnuts and vegetables together. This technique results in a perfectly thick spoonable delight that’s teaming with a rounded assortment of nutrients perfect for athletes. In this roundup of nutrition, beets are a superstar for athletes. Compounds found in beets increase the body’s ability to use oxygen and increase the time it takes to feel exhausted. Consuming chestnuts increases energy levels as they provide carbohydrates for both short and long-term energy.

Both beets and chestnuts are available in many stores already peeled and cooked making this soup much easier and faster to make. If you can’t find them in store, you can cook them yourself in advance and then toss them into the soup.

This soup is also fun experiment with color for kids to get them involved with cooking and healthy eating. As written, the recipe is earth toned with a hint of purple. Using golden beets will result in a yellow hue, and if you really want to make this vibrantly magenta, use red beets and change the mushrooms to a white mushroom so the redness doesn’t get muted with the brown tones of the shitake. You can also use a white balsamic or white wine vinegar to allow the natural bold beet color in either red or golden to really shine through.

Chestnut Beetroot Soup

Calories 404, Protein 7g, Total Carbs 54g, Fat 19g

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 20 min

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 leek, white part only, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3.5 oz Shitake mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
• 8 oz peeled and steamed chestnuts
• 8 oz beets of any kind (about 2 whole beets), peeled and cooked
• 3 cups low sodium bone broth or vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation Instructions:

1. In a saucepot, heat the olive oil and add the leek, garlic, and mushrooms. Cook 3-4 minutes until the leek begins to soften.
2. Add the chestnuts, beets, broth, and thyme. Simmer 20 minutes.
3. Pureé the entire soup with an immersion stick blender or let cool slightly and gently pour into a blender and pureé.

The post Chestnut Beetroot Soup appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Easy and economical, this simple soup is a quick and flavorful way to feed your family. Inspired by the ethnic origins of peanut soup, this soup utilizes another common staple of African cuisine, the yam, or its similar relative, the sweet potato, and combines these key components with Thai curry paste and lentils. Thai cuisine also utilizes peanuts or other nuts in their regional dishes which complements the unique curry blend that is flavorful but not overly spicy.

Both sweet potatoes and red lentils are a great source of dietary fiber and complex carbs. Having plenty of dietary fiber is essential to burning fat which in turn lends itself to a more defined and muscular physique.

Sweet potatoes and lentils increase slow burning energy thanks to their fiber and complex carb structure giving you the lasting energy needed to power through your day. Both of these orange beauties are a healthy source of carbohydrates for athletes. The sweet tuber also is high in beta carotene and antioxidants to help reduce post workout inflammation.

Lentils and nut butter are the key protein providers for this soup and serve to balance out the nutritional profile while giving it texture. Kids also enjoy this creamy, nutty bowl of sweet bold color which can be made milder if needed by altering the amount of curry paste.

Sweet Potato Lentil Soup

Calories 352, Protein 16g, Total Carbs 48g, Fat 11g

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 20 min

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable or chicken bone broth
• 2 sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and diced
• 1 cup red lentils, rinsed
• 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste (or adjust to taste)
• 2 tablespoons nut butter of any kind (almond, cashew, peanut, or sunbutter)
• Fresh chopped cilantro and red pepper flakes, for garnish

Preparation Instructions:

1. In a saucepot, heat the olive oil and add the onion and garlic. Cook 3-4 minutes until the onion begins to soften.
2. Add the broth, sweet potato, and lentils.
3. Simmer about 20 minutes until the potato and lentils are tender.
4. Stir in the red curry paste and nut butter until dissolved.
5. Garnish with red pepper flakes and cilantro.

The post Sweet Potato Lentil Soup appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

We live in the age of instant gratification. A smartphone driven world now expects instant responses to mail that once would have taken weeks and feels like they are slumming it when they choose to go with Amazon’s free 2-day shipping. NFL fans expect their quarterbacks to be legends by year three and beginning weightlifters grow frustrated when they don’t add twenty pounds of muscle in the first month. We’ve forgotten the wisdom of marinating and slow-cooking.

These norms are especially destructive when they come to our expectations about food. Instant convenience food and fast food have come to characterize most of the food we eat. These norms would have been seen as unimaginable 60 years ago, but today are deemed necessities for our fast-paced lives. They are not.

Most conclude that they have two options when it comes to eating well:

1. Pay exorbitantly for gourmet subscriptions, eating out at high-priced chains like Salata or Zoe’s Kitchen, or choose healthy pre-made convenience choices like those offered at Whole Foods.
2. Buy all the expensive healthy foods at the store and spend every waking moment cooking.

It simply doesn’t have to be this way. There is no doubt that quality foods are often way overpriced, especially when they come pre-cut, pre-marinated, and pre-prepared for your simplicity. Yet, there are still tons of cheap options.

If you look at produce it is usually far more expensive to get the packaged items than the whole, natural produce. These fruits and vegetables really don’t take much work to make very tasty. Just a little planning.

Finding a Cheaper Equal

It is a fun, interesting exercise to compare substitutes. With childcare expenses stacking up, my wife and I did a ruthless evaluation of our eating habits and, despite cooking at home for all meals, encountered tons of waste we’d never have considered.

Asparagus was 3.99 a bundle—at two bundles a week we were spending $8. We substituted for broccoli. A week’s worth costs less than $2 and we actually enjoy them even more. I cook them in the oven with garlic, onion powder, lemon pepper, and parmesan. That’s a savings of $24 per month.

We did this with everything. Bottled water cost $12/week, about $48/month. Our one-time filter expense erased that. My deluxe mixed nuts were wholesale so I figured they were cheap, but I was spending about $12/week on them. About $50 per month. By buying raw almonds, raw walnuts, raw sunflower seeds, and raw peanuts in bulk, my monthly nut expenses are more than cut in half. If trying to save more err on the side of peanuts. They’re dirt cheap.

For breakfast, I shifted my daily omelet to a bowl of steel cut oats and still got the eggs at lunch. On work days they are hardboiled and added to my salad and on weekends I make a lunch omelet. This has created two very cheap, extremely healthy meals each day: oats for breakfast and an egg/veggie combination at lunch.

Still, we hit a snag when it came to our meat expenses. We were already buying meat and fish in its most affordable form, other than going out and doing the killing and processing on my own. A student of the world, it occurred to me that we could cut our daily meat consumption in half or more, by adding a grain and a legume to dinner each night.

The combination packs all 20 essential amino acids to create a fantastic, nutrient-rich complete protein. Most of the world lives on rice and beans because they are so cheap, nutrient-rich, and adaptable to different dishes and styles. You can make them with curry and Indian seasoning, east Asian seasoning, Mediterranean style, or with lots of spices and salsas more traditional in Latin America.

Typically, our dinners were a clear formula: meat and vegetables or fish and sweet potatoes. We cut our weekly meat consumption by more than half by adding brown rice and pinto beans to most meals. A 10lb bag of rice is $5. This lasts us over a month. A 12lb bag of pinto beans is $20 and this lasts well over two months. Our monthly meat and fish savings has been about $60.

Efficient Rice and Beans

Here is the catch. Rice and beans take a long time to cook. Still, they are very easy. If you make it a Sunday morning habit, they’ll be done and ready for Monday with very little work. If I can start these up first thing Sunday morning both the rice and beans will be ready for dinner that night. If your kids are at an appropriate age, I encourage you to enlist them in the preparation.

These rice and beans combine wonderfully and are quickly reheated. I usually just mix them together in a pot on the stove and add whatever spice or season I’m in the mood for. If you’re into it, curry is one of my favorites.

Slow Cooker Pinto Beans

Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil on low for 15-20 minutes.

Then add the mixture to the slow cooker along with:

• 2 ½ cups of pinto beans (no need to rinse)
• 7 ½ cups water
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp salt
• Jalapeños, as desired

Then stir all and cover and cook on low 7 to 9 hours (I like mine closer to 9)

Slow Cooker Brown Rice

Rub the inside of the pan in olive oil

Then add:

• 6 cups of water (if rice is ever not soft enough, add a little more)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 3 cups brown rice
• Chopped cilantro, if desired

Then stir and cook on high for three hours.

Serving sizes are estimates for a family of five. Just cut them proportionally as you need. For example, in a weird week, I might do just 4 cups of water and 2 cups of brown rice.

Eating Well Is a Top Priority

Feeding your family well doesn’t have to take up every moment of your evening or break the bank. It is, however, essential to your kids growing up valuing the health that will magnify all their efforts and give them more life in their years and more years in their life. Most people spend their whole lives struggling with food choices. They’ve never seen a model outside our terribly unhealthy norms. Strong parents make strong kids.

Give your children the gift of a strong, sensible nutrition model and they’ll be empowered to control this vital choice in their future. Life is too short to be normal.

This Week’s Mission

Go through your kitchen and get rid of anything that falls short of your standard for health. Anything you’d prefer not to snack on on a daily basis goes. Desserts and treats would ideally be fun deviations from the daily norm, rather than a nightly expectation.

Thus, they should require a trip. Optimize your environment for success. For more guidance on how to shape your environment, check out my free e-book, The Essential Guide to Self-Mastery.

The post Family Nutrition Made Easy: Beans and Brown Rice appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Stews that “stick to the ribs” have a comforting appeal, particularly during the most recent polar vortex. Nordic style stews, like this fish chowder, use a variety of vegetables to flavor the base and most often use starchy root vegetables like celeriac, turnip, or potatoes to provide thickening to the soup as well as nutritional energy.

This chowder is also known in the Scandinavian countries as fiskesuppe which literally translates to fish soup though fish isn’t the only sea protein you can add. Scallops, lobster, clams, and shrimp are among other options that you can use in tandem with or in place of the fish in this chowder for an equally delicious dish.

Traditionally, Nordic cooks add heavy cream to the chowder but you can keep this dairy-free if desired by using coconut milk instead. The mild coconut flavor complements the fish perfectly and the added healthy fats of either traditional cream or coconut milk result in a thick fulfilling stew that helps keep you satisfied until the next meal.

Nordic Fish Chowder

Calories 324, Protein 18g, Total Carbs 16g, Fat 19g

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 30 min

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 leek, white part only, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 white potato (or small celeriac root), peeled and diced
• 1 turnip peeled and diced
• 2 sticks of celery, diced
• 2 ½ cups vegetable broth or fish broth
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup dry white wine (or sub additional water)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 10-12 oz, white fish or salmon cut into bite size chunks
• ½ cup cream (or coconut milk for dairy-free)
• 1 tablespoon chives, roughly chopped
• Pink Himalayan salt, to taste
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation Instructions:

1. In a saucepot, heat the olive oil and add the leek and garlic. Cook 3-4 minutes until the leek begins to soften.
2. Add the potato, turnip, celery, broth, water, wine, and thyme.
3. Simmer about 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
4. Add fish to the stewpot and simmer about 5 minutes until cooked through.
5. Stir in the cream and chives and then season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: This stew works great with other types of seafood as well. Try it with shrimp or scallops or a combination of seafood!

The post Stick to the Ribs Nordic Fish Chowder appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Most grow up eating Pop Tarts or Cinnamon Toast Crunch for breakfast. It isn’t until we leave home that we realize the insanity of having dessert for breakfast. Even those cereals billed as healthy, like Cheerios and Granola, tend to be less than ideal options. Immersed in the norms of our convenience food society, we have to rethink how we design breakfast.

Prior to fatherhood, I’d have a big spinach omelet every morning and had more than enough time to fit in all my other needs. When my wife and I adopted two children this past September, everything changed. It became a challenge to work out, make breakfast, and attend to the many needs of two children under two. I had to use my time better and, even more, we had to be less wasteful with our food budget. Still, I couldn’t allow these constraints to become excuses for eating less healthy.

This inspired the family to adopt steel cut oats as our staple breakfast. While I love the process of throwing these together on a Saturday morning, all that preparation is quite a burden on workdays. The sad reality is that to eat healthy without breaking the bank does require a little bit of time. I now batch that time to one easy Sunday morning. In less than 30 minutes I make a week’s worth of delicious, nutritious breakfast for the whole family and all for less than $3. A week’s worth of steel cut oats (I put in 5 cups of oats per week) is less than $1 per pound.

Shane’s Steel Cut Oats Breakfast Solution

Making them is this simple:

You’ll need:

• A large stovetop pot
• Steel cut oats (I buy them in bulk section of Sprouts for 99 cents/pound)
• Water

And that’s it! Other than, of course, the many other ingredients listed below which take this simple grain and turn it into a rockstar meal, you’ll come to crave. Other suggested ingredients include:

• Salt
• Whole milk
• Chia seeds
• Flax seeds
• Walnuts, sunflower seeds, slivered almonds, or peanut butter
• 3-4 lemons
• Cinnamon
• Fruit such as raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, bananas, or raisins

The exact measurements are variable to your palate and desires. It is far more art than science.

Here is what mine looks like:

• ¼ cup of oats per serving (bear in mind a Shane-sized serving is an overflowing ½ cup)
• ¾ cups of water (approximate) per serving
• ½ tsp of salt per serving
• Milk to texture (¼ cup per serving if you need a starting point)
• Chia/flax as desired
• Walnuts, sunflower seeds, slivered almonds, or peanut butter, as desired
• Lemon zest to taste (this is surprisingly necessary)
• Cinnamon to taste
• Fruit to taste

To reheat each day, I fill my bowl with the desired amount of oats and I microwave for 2 and half minutes. Then I add my fruit and milk. It will be clumpy looking. Stir it all together and voila! Its as good as the day it was made.

Simple, tasty and healthy. The combination of oats and nuts makes for a very complete protein punch, especially when you add the milk. The berries add tons of flavor and essential nutrients and the bananas or raisins provide a very sweet touch. How many calories, you ask? Are you kidding? Healthy families don’t count calories. Have a bowl—they’re healthy and delicious.

The post Steel Cut Oats: Healthy Breakfast for the Whole Family appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Soothing soups are a staple during the winter months because of their warm comforting qualities. This broccoli blue cheese soup is a nutritious addition to your soup repertoire. Bone broth is used as the liquid base for an added boost of amino acids, collagen, and minerals to enhance your immune system during cold and flu season.

Aside from the stellar list of vitamins and minerals that it contains, the cruciferous vegetable broccoli, acts as a digestive power punch providing fiber and antioxidants to support healthy gut flora and improve immune function. Broccoli is traditionally combined with heavy cream and cheese in many broccoli based soups but in this version, I’ve lightened up the dairy by adding a potato to the pureé and eliminated the cream in exchange for additional bone broth. Changing up the cheese to a more sophisticated blue cheese elevates this from being everyday soup to something unexpected.

Broccoli Blue Cheese Soup

Calories 237, Protein 9g, Total Carbs 14g, Fat 17g

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 20 min

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head of broccoli (about 12 ounces), broken into florets and hard stems removed
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 white onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 celery stalk, diced
• 1 white potato, peeled and diced
• 3 cups low sodium chicken bone broth
• 4 oz blue cheese crumbles
• Pink Himalayan salt, to taste
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation Instructions:

1. In a saucepot, add the olive oil, onion, and garlic. Sauté until softened.
2. Add the broccoli, potato, celery, and the broth.
3. Simmer about 20 minutes until all veggies are soft.
4. Puree with an immersion stick blender (or let cool slightly and pour into a standing blender to pureé).
5. Add blue cheese crumbles while hot and stir until melted and completely combined.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Garnish with additional blue cheese crumbles, broccoli florets, or caramelized onions as desired.

Note: You can easily make this heartier by adding cooked diced chicken if desired.

The post Broccoli Bleu Cheese Soup appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

It’s the season of holiday parties, game days, and other special events that center around getting together with friends, family, and finger foods. Eliminate the stress of an elaborate spread with a simple and creamy pesto bean dip that comes together in just minutes.

Inspired by a winter caprese salad, this appetizer combines plain Greek yogurt with pureéd white cannellini beans, pesto, and sundried tomatoes to lighten up the amount of dairy as well as add nutrition. This dip can be served immediately or chilled for super quick preparation which is great if you’re running late.

For a creamier effect, pesto bean dip can also be heated up while still preserving the probiotic qualities of the yogurt. To do this, warm it in a saucepan just until it’s warmed through but not hot. Serve alongside a variety of tasty dippers like crispy crackers and an assortment of vegetables for a healthy snack.

Creamy Pesto Bean Dip

Calories 112, Protein 5g, Total Carbs 9g, Fat 6g

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: Warming Only (optional)

Serves: 10

Ingredients:

• ½ cup plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt
• 1 can cannellini (or other white beans), rinsed and pureéd
• ¼ cup chopped sundried tomatoes
• ½ cup prepared pesto
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

Preparation Instructions:

1. In a bowl or food processor mix together all ingredients.
2. Can be served warm or chilled. To warm, place in a small saucepan or dip size Crock-Pot until warmed through but not hot.
3. Top with additional dollop of pesto or add a basil garnish, if desired.
4. Serve with toasted baguette slices, rice crackers, or an assortment of veggie dippers.

The post Creamy Pesto Bean Dip appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Kid friendly and fun to eat, the whole family will adore this side dish that is simple to make and easy to enjoy. Thinly sliced slivers of delicata squash provide a unique and healthy side dish. With a taste similar to a sweet potato, delicata squash is rich in fiber and immune boosting vitamin C. Unsweetened coconut flakes coat these squash slices with a delicious flavor that coordinates well with the natural nutty sweetness of this fall vegetable.

With its unique cream and green striped skin, the delicata squash also has a time saving characteristic. Once delicata squash is cooked, its skin becomes very soft and is edible so there is no need to peel it before preparing or serving. I like to cook these in an air fryer which is faster than oven roasting, though you can do it that way, too. Cooking them in an air fryer creates a nice crisp exterior on the coating and makes them perfect for dipping into a spicy mayo or a more traditional sweet chili sauce. This versatile dish is paleo friendly and suitable for vegetarians as well. Because it is appropriate for a multitude of eating styles, these dippers also make an awesome appetizer for parties, game-day, or the holidays!

Coconut Delicata Squash Dippers

Calories 340, Protein 4g, Total Carbs 14g, Fat 31g

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 12 minutes in air fryer or 25 minutes in oven

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 delicata squash, halved, seeded and cut into ¼ inch slices
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup unsweetened desiccated coconut flakes
• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• Pinch of salt

Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce:

• ½ cup all natural or homemade mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon garlic chili sauce or sambal oelek

Preparation Instructions:

1. Prepare squash by cutting of both ends, slice in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and then cut into ¼ inch slices. Leave the peel on.
2. Place egg in a small dish and beat it. Set aside.
3. Combine coconut, cayenne pepper, and salt in a small bowl.
4. Coat squash pieces in the egg and then toss in the coconut mixture being sure all sides are covered lightly.
5. Place in an air fryer and fry at 390 degrees for 12 minutes or until coconut is browned and squash is tender.
6. While squash is cooking, combine the mayonnaise and chili sauce and set aside.
7. Serve squash hot with the spicy mayonnaise or a sweet chili sauce.

Oven alternative: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place coated squash on a baking sheet and bake 20-25 minutes.

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