blog

Banana Carrot Muffins

January 13, 2021 by Lindsay 5 Comments

These Banana Carrot Muffins are made with simple ingredients, lightly sweetened and perfect for a kid-friendly breakfast or snack!

Hi friends!

Can’t wait to share these Banana Carrot Muffins with you guys to kick off the new year! I’ve been making these for my kids for about a month now and they’ve been a big hit all around. My younger two are pretty good about eating a variety of muffins and bars that I make but my oldest has a couple favorites and it’s tough to get him to branch out.

He absolutely loves my Lentil Banana Muffins and after trying a few different flavor combos, it became clear that his most preferred baked goods will always have bananas in them. So I came up with a cross between my lentil muffins and my Carrot Applesauce Muffins and that’s what we have here today!

Banana Carrot Muffins

Instead of adding sugar to these, I relied on the sweetness of extra-ripe bananas and vanilla yogurt. However, I’ve also tested them adding 1/4 cup maple syrup and they come out great so you can make them that way for a slightly sweeter muffin.

Here’s what you need:

Mashed bananas – make sure they’re extra brown and spotty for maximum sweetness
Carrots – I chop mine in a food processor and then make the whole muffin batter in the food processor to make the carrots less noticeable but you could also just make them in a bowl with shredded carrots
Vanilla yogurt- you could swap plain yogurt if you wanted or use plain yogurt + maple syrup
Egg
Oil – I use avocado oil
Hemp seeds – an easy way to add extra nutrients!
Baking soda, cinnamon, vanilla
White whole wheat flour – my go-to for baking
Chocolate chips – optional but likely preferred especially since these muffins aren’t very sweet.

Here’s how you make them:

Banana Carrot Muffins

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 4 reviews

These Banana Carrot Muffins are made with simple ingredients, lightly sweetened and perfect for a kid-friendly breakfast or snack!

Author: Lindsay
Prep Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 12 large muffins 1x

Ingredients

Scale

1 cup mashed bananas (approx 2 medium, as ripe as possible)
1 cup shredded carrots (or chop in food processor. Squeeze to remove extra water)
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1 egg
1/4 cup avocado oil
1/4 cup maple syrup (*Optional – I make them without but you can add for a sweeter muffin)
1/4 cup hemp seeds (optional but recommended!)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups white whole wheat flour
pinch of salt

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Chop carrots in food processor. Scoop into paper towel and squeeze to remove extra water.
Return to food processor and add banana, yogurt, egg, oil and hemp seeds. Process until smooth.*
Add baking soda, cinnamon, vanilla, flour and salt and process until combined.
Add chocolate chips and pulse to combine.
Spoon into greased or lined muffin tins (Makes 12 big or 16 smaller muffins)
Bake at 375 for 18-22 minutes.

Notes

*You can also shred carrots by hand and just mix the batter in a bowl but the carrots will be more noticeable.

Instead of chocolate chips you could try raisins or other dried fruit.

What do you think?!

Let me know if you try these! They’re a new favorite around here!

Want more kid-friendly baking recipes? Find 20+ ideas here:

Kid-friendly Baking Recipes

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

9 Smoothie Bowl Recipes

January 7, 2021 by Lindsay 5 Comments

These healthy smoothie bowl recipes are almost too pretty to eat! Smoothie bowls are an easy way to pack fruit, protein and veggies all into one meal and then you can get creative with the toppings!

Hi Friends!

Let’s talk about smoothie bowls. Smoothies are great and all, but have you tried them super thick and in a bowl with toppings?! Can’t be beaten! Smoothie bowl recipes are great because you can easily make them a full meal. Fruits make a great base, but if you add in a protein source and/or healthy fats, you can boost their staying power. Plus you can easily add some vegetables that you may be missing out on at other meals!

Some of my favorite smoothie veggies are zucchini and cauliflower because they blend in so easily and have very little flavor. Spinach and other leafy greens also blend well into smoothies and although they may not make them look as appetizing, they rarely alter the flavor.

I’ve been scouring the internet for some of the best smoothie bowls out there and I wanted to share them with you!

Healthy Smoothie Bowl Recipes

Avocado Pineapple Smoothie Bowl via Running to the Kitchen. A tropical delight that’s packed with nutrients.

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie Bowl via Liz’s Healthy Table. This classic combo can’t be beaten.

Strawberry Coconut Smoothie Bowl via Inside Bru Crew Life. A simple yet satisfying recipe that can be customized with your favorite toppings.

Strawberry Peanut Butter Swirl Smoothie via Flavor the Moments. Your favorite sandwich combo in drinkable form.

Peach Zucchini Smoothie Bowl via The Lean Green Bean. The perfect way to use up some of that summer zucchini.

Cranberry Smoothie Bowl via Nutmeg Nanny. Cranberries aren’t just for Thanksgiving!

Apple Pie Smoothie Bowl via Fit Foodie Finds. Apples are often overlooked for smoothies but make a great addition!

Peach Pie Smoothie Bowl via Spoonful of Flavor. Taste as good as dessert!

Blueberry Peach Smoothie Bowl via A Cedar Spoon. A classic flavor combo that everyone will love!

Let’s chat:

Do you prefer smoothies or smoothie bowls?

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

20 Easy Dinner Ideas

December 16, 2020 by Lindsay 2 Comments

Are you looking for easy dinner ideas for those nights you don’t feel like cooking? Here’s a round-up on super simple meals that you can make without much time, effort or brainpower.

Hi friends!

Lately I’ve been in a bit of a dinner slump. My focus is on surviving the day and with three littles, that doesn’t leave a lot of brain power to plan dinner. I need easy dinner ideas that I can make quickly and without much thought. We all have our favorites, right? Go-to meals most of the family will eat without complaint. Meals we can stash in our freezer and quickly pull out to thaw or just throw on a pan and stick in the oven.

I reached out to my Instagram community to ask them what meals fit the bill in their house and I felt like there are a lot of good answers, so I put them together to share.

By far, the top 5 most common responses were:

Mexican night: Tacos, taco salad and build your own burrito bowls are also a hit. Add some fajita veggies if you’re feeling fancy. You can make this easier by pre slicing peppers and onions. Store them in the freezer so all you have to do is toss them in a hot pan.
Breakfast for dinner: Eggs, pancakes, french toast, waffles. Use a boxed mix or pull some out of the freezer to make it even easier on yourself.
Spaghetti: Package of pasta, jar of sauce and occasionally some meatballs. It was also super common to have meat sauce stored in the freezer so it could just be defrosted and served over freshly cooked noodles.
Pesto pasta with chicken sausage: Cook some noodles or tortellini, toss in pesto and add sliced chicken sausage. Toss some veggies on a sheet pan to roast while the noodles are cooking and mix those in as well if you’re feeling fancy.
Sheet pan gnocchi with chicken sausage – There are many versions but this is one of my recipes and I was shocked how many people said they make it regularly. A super simple dinner you can make using frozen of boxed gnocchi and even frozen veggies if you want.

Here are some other simple dinner ideas:

Grilled chicken + starch + veggie –> Try my 4 ingredient marinade before grilling, choose rice/potatoes etc and your favorite veggie and add bbq sauce or your favorite sauce!
Rotisserie chicken + sweet potato fries + broccoli –> Buy a chicken or make one of your own by simply cooking a whole chicken in the crockpot, instant pot or air fryer. Sub whatever roasted veggie you want for broccoli.
Boxed mac and cheese + frozen peas + chicken sausage –> Swap white beans for a vegetarian option or skip the green veggies and stir in some pumpkin.
Salmon + green beans + salad dressing + rice –> Put salmon on a sheet pan with green beans, top with salad dressing (I like Italian) and bake. Serve with rice. Or swap salmon for chicken breasts and green beans for carrots and potatoes and use honey mustard dressing.
Chicken + bbq or buffalo sauce + fries + salad –> Cook chicken and sauce in a crockpot or Instant Pot. Shred and serve on buns with fries and a side salad. Or try my Instant Pot Hummus Chicken.
Deli meat + crescent rolls + cheese —> Roll cheese and meat in crescent rolls and bake. Serve with raw veggies and fruit.
Groud turkey + sweet potato + cheese & salsa –> Cook turkey with taco seasoning. Microwaves sweet potatoes. Top potatoes with taco meat, salsa and cheese.

Shrimp or lentils + frozen veggies + curry paste + coconut milk –> Mix protein with veggies, add curry paste and coconut milk. Serve with rice and naan.
Grilled turkey & cheese + canned soup –> Or any combination of your fav quick and easy soup and sandwich.
Italian sausages + peppers + onions –> On the grill or baked on a sheet pan. Eat on rolls or as is!
Ravioli/tortellini + diced tomatoes + baby spinach + parmesan –> Cook pasta, saute in butter and garlic with tomatoes and baby spinach. Top with parmesan cheese. Add shrimp for extra protein.
Bagged caesar salad + rotisserie chicken or chicken fingers + tortilla –> Make a chicken Caeser wrap and serve with fruit. Swap another bagged salad kit or your fav lettuce and dressing if you want.
Cooked chicken + frozen veggies + biscuit dough –> Cooke chicken and veggies with some flour and broth. Add a splash of cream. Bring to a boil, drop in biscuit dough, cover and let dumplings cook!
Leftover chicken + frozen veggies + rice –> Saute chicken and veggies, add rice (and eggs to scramble if you want) and some soy sauce to make fried rice. Sub frozen edamame to make it vegetarian.

Need more ideas? Check out these posts:

Easy Weeknight Meals

Quick Family Meals

Easy Pantry & Freezer Meals

Enjoy!

–Lindsay–

Healthy Freezer Snacks

December 14, 2020 by Lindsay 24 Comments

Need some healthy snack ideas to feed your kids after school? Here are some easy, nutritious ideas that you can prep ahead of time and freeze!

Hi Friends!

I’m excited to share some healthy freezer snacks with you today! If you’ve followed for a while, you know I love my freezer and that I often use it mostly to make my life easier at snack time vs dinner time like some people.

Over the years I’ve found several snacks that can be frozen. Ie you prep them ahead of time and store them in the freezer so that when you have three kids screaming about how hungry they are, you can quickly pull something out for them! Lots of these ideas can be found in my After School Healthy Snacks and Healthy Snacks for Toddlers posts.

If you want some non-freezer snack ideas, check out these posts:

Here are a few freezer snack ideas:

Healthy Freezer Snacks

Energy balls

Energy balls and bars are great for the freezer. They don’t freeze all the way through, so you can eat them straight from the freezer and they last forever so you can make a big batch to have them on hand when you need them.

A few favorites:

Pro tip- If you don’t want to spend the time rolling them into balls, just press into a 9×9 pan, then freeze and cut into bars.

Smoothies

Did you know you can prep smoothies ahead of time and freeze in glass jars? Then just pop them in the microwave when you’re ready to eat. I usually make a big batch in my Vitamix – enough for 6 smoothies – and freeze them all which gets me through 3 snack times with my boys.

A few favorites

Silken Tofu Mixed Berry Smoothie (If you’re not into tofu, swap in yogurt or milk!)
Kid-Friendly Smoothies with Vegetables
My go-to smoothie for the boys is mixed berries, milk, spinach and a splash of OJ

If you don’t have glass jars, you can also freeze smoothies in popsicle molds and enjoy them that way!

English Muffin Pizzas

These are a fan favorite around here. Just prep, freeze and microwave for 1 min when ready to eat.

Here’s my Freezer English Muffin Pizza recipe.

Oatmeal

Make a big batch of oatmeal, freeze in muffin tins and reheat as needed! Top with nut butter and fruit.

Here’s my recipe for Freezer Oatmeal Cups.

Waffles

Waffles freeze beautifully and all you have to do is pop them in the toaster. I always make a double batch then let them cool completely, break in half and freeze. Use them in place of bread for a sandwich to change things up!

A few favorites:

Banana Flax Waffles
Sweet Potato Waffles
Whole Wheat Yogurt Waffles
Try these Pumpkin Oat Flour Muffins for a gluten-free option

Muffins and Bars

Almost all muffins and bars freeze well. Make a double batch, freeze and just thaw on the counter or in the microwave as needed!

Favorites around here:

You can find all my muffin and bar recipes in one spot in the post: Kid-Friendly Baking Recipes.

Other ideas:

Frozen bananas

Slice bananas lengthwise, cut in half, top with peanut butter, sprinkle with hemp seeds and chocolate chips and freeze. Eat straight from the freezer.

Frozen yogurt

Dip blueberries in yogurt, freeze on a parchment lined baking tray, store in a bag in the freezer
Put yogurt in a ziploc bag, cut off the corner and squeeze yogurt drops onto parchment paper. Freeze, store in a bag in the freezer.
Freeze yogurt tubes so they can be eaten frozen.
Mix granola, chopped nuts and seeds, fruit and chocolate chips into yogurt. Spread on a parchment-lined tray and freeze. Break into chunks for frozen yogurt bark.
Try these Chocolate Covered Raspberries to change things up!

Eggs

Not everyone likes eggs frozen and reheated but if they get the thumbs up for your eaters, they are a great freezer option. Make them egg cups like these Ham and Cheese Egg Cups or scramble a bunch of eggs to make breakfast-style burritos that you can freeze and reheat.

See anything you like? Pin this post for later!

Want more snack ideas? I have a whole snack resource for you. Check out The Snack Spark for simple snack pairings, allergy-friendly snacks, my favorite bars and cereals and more!

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

10 Healthy After School Snacks For Kids

December 13, 2020 by Lindsay 2 Comments

10 easy to make, kid-friendly after school snacks that are perfect to help kids stay full until it’s time for dinner!

Hi Friends!

Now that school has been in full swing for a while, I’ve had some requests for after-school snacks. It seems people have run through their list of go-to snacks and the kids are getting sick of them! So I’m hopeful that this roundup will give you a few new ideas! These ideas are mostly homemade. If you’re looking for even more ideas for after school snacks to buy, I’ve got them in this post: After School Healthy Snacks. In that post, I tackle different after-school situations including if you eat dinner early or late, have sports practice, need car snacks or non-perishable snacks etc!

And if you need nut-free snacks specifically, I’ve got you covered with these Peanut and Tree Nut Free Packaged Snacks!

These snacks would be great additions to lunch boxes as well. I have a guide – A Month of Easy Packed Lunch Ideas for Kids if you need more lunch box ideas!

After School Snacks

Muffins and bars are my go-to snack always and I have so many options for you. They’re packed with healthy ingredients like vegetables, lentils, beans, nuts and seeds AND they taste great. Everything from Pumpkin Yogurt Bars, to Lentil Banana Muffins, to Sweet Potato White Bean Bars!

My Kid-Friendly Baking Recipes post has links to all these recipes in one convenient post!

A mix of apple slices and graham crackers drizzled with yogurt and peanut butter plus lots of fun toppings!

Apple Graham Cracker Snack Nachos

Egg wraps made with just one ingredient – eat them plain or fill with pepperoni and cheese or turkey and avocado etc!

Easy Egg Wraps

Prep a bunch of mini pizzas ahead of time and just microwave as needed.

Frozen English Muffin Mini Pizzas

Silken tofu adds protein to smoothies without altering the taste! Did you know you can make smoothies ahead of time, then simple freeze in glass jars and microwave as needed?!

Silken Tofu Smoothie

Another nutrient-packed snack that can be made ahead of time and just grabbed from the freezer as needed.

My Go-To Energy Balls (Or try my Lemon Energy Balls)

Pro tip- If you don’t want to spend time rolling balls, just press the mixture into a 9×9 pan, freeze and then cut into bars.

Top with peanut butter or add some chocolate chips for fun!

PB Banana Chia Pudding

A super-quick way to make an egg sandwich. Add cheese, turkey, avocado etc!

90 Second Microwave Egg Sandwich

Make a big batch of oatmeal, freeze in muffin tins and then just pull a couple out and microwave for a snack.

Freezer Prep Oatmeal Cups

Waffles do great in the toaster. Make a batch, freeze and then toast as needed. Use one instead of bread to make peanut butter and jelly for a fun change of pace!

Banana Flax Waffles

See anything that caught your eye? Pin this post for later to remind you!

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

If this post was helpful and you want even more snack ideas, you’ll love The Snack Spark. It’s a pdf resource guide that includes what makes a healthy snack, simple snack pairings, my favorite bars and allergy-friendly snacks! Check out The Snack Spark for more details!

I’ve also got several snack posts if you need more ideas:

No-Bake Peppermint Chocolate Bites

December 12, 2020 by Lindsay

These No-Bake Peppermint Chocolate Bites are simple, healthy and ready in minutes. This gluten-free recipe would make a great addition to your holiday cookie tray!

*Originally published 12/2015.*

Hi friends!

I’ve been making these No-Bake Peppermint Chocolate Bites for 5 years now and they are still a HUGE favorite of mine. I actually make them year-round, usually sans candy cane or white chocolate drizzle, but now that the holiday season has rolled around again, I plan to enjoy adding those crushed candy canes to my next few batches!

These mint chocolate bites come together super quickly, are full of flavor and require just a few ingredients!

Here’s how you make them:

No-Bake Peppermint Chocolate Bites

Print Recipe

These No-Bake Peppermint Chocolate Bites are simple, healthy and ready in minutes. This gluten-free recipe would make a great addition to your holiday cookie tray!

Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: approximately 16 balls 1x