Snickerdoode-lish Snack Cookies

For tasty other fruit, flax, grain, and nut DR GREGER DAILY DOZEN CHECK MARKS!

TRY THE AWESOME FREE APP!

Snicherdoodle-ish Cinnamon Snack Cookies

1.5 c pitted dates
1.5 c walnuts
1/2 c ground flaxseed
1/2 c Irish oats (steel cut oats)
1 Tbsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a food processor for about 2 min until a dough forms. At this point, you could be done, form into balls or bars, and eat it just like that!

To make cookies, form balls and flatten. Cookies will not change shape during baking. Bake at 350 for ~15 min. Enjoy!

Here is how I sometimes do it. Dump dough on a silicone baking sheet, flatten dough with a second baking sheet. Then use a round tablespoon to sort of cut out cookie shapes right on the baking sheet. It makes about 3.5 dozen cookies. Bake at 350 for ~15 min. Enjoy!

THIS is a post with more cookie recipes (of course all my cookie recipes can be eaten for breakfast!)!

Chocolate Cake Breakfast Muffins

Chocolate Cake Breakfast Muffins are a great way to start your day!

These treats are great for any time! They provide several Dr Greger check marks: 2 "other fruits", flax, and whole grains! Plus, they are nut-free, so they are great for school lunches and snacks!

You really can use this recipe as a healthy chocolate cake! It's very tasty and sweet!

Chocolate Cake Breakfast Muffins

10 dates, pitted

4 bananas (extra ripe = extra sweet)

1/4 c flaxseed, ground (so you absorb the nutrition, also I sometimes add another 1/4 c for more nutrition)

1 c warm water

2 c whole wheat flour (pastry flour makes them extra fluffy!)

1 Tbsp baking powder (Trader Joe's sells aluminum-free)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 c cocoa, unsweetened (you could add a bit more for even more chocolaty treats)

Combine first 4 ingredients in blender. Combine last 4 ingredients in large bowl. Then add wet to dry and mix until well combined, careful not to over mix.

Pour batter into 9x9" pan and bake at 350 degrees for 40 min, or until cooked through. I love my silicone bakeware. 

You might notice, this is basically my Smooth and Sweet Banana Bread recipe plus 1/2 cup cocoa! So versatile! How do you mix it up?!

Here is another variation on proportions (without bananas) to make more of a "cookie" and it's still very nutritious!

Chocolate Brownie Muffin Tops

Easy Everyday Enchiladas

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with these tasty, versatile, and so-easy-to-make enchiladas! Feel free to vary the ingredients (little more or less of this or that) because every way I make this recipe it's a hit!

Soya chunks (used in this recipe) are sometimes used as croutons in India. This is a one-ingredient product: dehydrated soy. Once rehydrated, pieces take on a chewy, chickeny/meaty texture. Like tofu (and chicken!), it tastes like whatever flavor is added. It is a fabulous replacement for chicken in all of your favorite recipes; share your experiences in the comments below!

Easy Everyday Enchiladas
(at our house, we could eat them everyday!)

5-6 tomatoes, pureed (~2 c, or 14 oz can)
1-2 c soya chunks (optional; find these crouton-like pieces at any Indian grocer, or on Amazon)
4 c salsa (1 large jar)
1 block tofu (any firmness, organic preferred, drained, squeezed)
1 c chilies and tomatoes (10 oz can Rotel, no salt added is sometimes available)
4-5 c beans (any combo of black, refried, and pinto; about 3 cans; prepared from dry is delicious, easy, and cheap!)
1lb spinach, chopped (frozen works!)
1/2 c flaxseed, ground (try adding more and no one will notice!)
Whole wheat tortillas, 8 or so
Enchilada sauce (optional...you could add some of this on the bottom and on the top, but it's not needed, and we don't use it any more)

~Hydrate soya chunks by soaking in water in a cereal bowl, with a second cereal bowl on top to make sure the chunks are submerged.
~After a few minutes, press top bowl down and drain.
~In food processor, briefly shred soya chunks with 1 c salsa, then transfer to a large mixing bowl.
~Pour tomato puree into rectangular, glass baking pan.
~Next, blend tofu and 2 c salsa, and add this salmon-colored sauce to the mixing bowl.
~Add flax, spinach, all beans, chilies, and remaining salsa and stir everything together. 
~Add heaping 1-cup scoops of filling to each tortilla, and roll it up a bit, and place in pan, repeat until pan is full.
~When pan is full, add extra filling on sides if there is room.
~Squish enchiladas down in the pan with a spatula, so all the tortillas are moist and everything is spread out evenly.
With extra filling, prepare a second small pan the same way, or in layers: filling, tortilla, filling, tortilla, etc.
~Bake for about 40 min at 350, and enjoy!
Great topped with salsa and/or guacamole!

*An alternative meal is to pump up poblano peppers with this enchilada filling!
**One more way to use the filling is to alternate flat layers of corn tortillas and filling, then bake. This makes a Mexican lasagna :)

 
This recipe provides plenty of Dr Greger Check Marks! 1) beans, 2) greens, 3) other veggies, 4) whole grains, and 5) flax !

See our other Mexican options HERE! Happy early Cinco de Mayo!

And for fun, a Holderness Family video: It's Gonna Be May! 

May Be EASIEST Dinner Ever! Sloppy Len's (Vegan Sloppy Joe's, Sloppy Ben's)

This is SO easy, and TASTY! And Familiar! As I've said before, LENTILS are SO nutritious! One of the healthiest "beans"! And a great way to get your daily dose of flaxseed! It's a definite KID-friendly meal! They could even make it! (with some help by the stove :) )

It's another way to get Dr Greger Daily Dozen Check Marks!

Sloppy Len's (Sloppy Ben's, Sloppy Lentils)
~4 c water (enough to cover mound of lentils)
~ 2 c dry lentils
15 oz can sloppy Joe sauce 
2/3 c ground flaxseed

Cover and surround a mound of lentils with water in a pot; this is about 4 cups. Add 1 can sauce, stir, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 30 min. I add some water to can to make sure I get all the sauce; this extra cup or so of water is ok. After the 30 min, stir in flaxseed, and enjoy on a bun, in a pita, or in a bowl on it's own!

With a bit more time, you can make the Forks Over Knives recipe - and avoid a canned food! (but actually, this recipe still has brown sugar and soy sauce, so if you want NO Sugar, Oil, Salt...get Unprocessed, an awesome cookbook from Chef AJ and make some Not So Sloppy Joe's on p.107)

I found a sauce that is fairly benign, especially since it helps us eat more lentils! Also, I found it at a drug store, so there would likely be even better options at a grocery store! Dei Fratelli's sauce has few ingredients, with no HFCS or other chemicals. While it contains salt and sugar, it's a great way to enjoy lentils fast!




On the same trip, I was so saddened to see NO BEAN chili! Really! Chili is one of the few ways many Americans normally eat beans. Plus, canned chili! Yikes! Chili is like the easiest meal to make ever! Here are some recipes:
SUPER-EASY CHILI
MADRAS CHILI
SLOW COOKER INDIAN CHILI

Quick and Creamy Kale Couscous Gets 9 Check Marks off Dr Greger's Daily Dozen!

Quick and Creamy Kale Couscous is super easy, nutritious, and delicious! Prepare the dish in 5 minutes and enjoy it all week!

Quick and Creamy Kale Couscous gets 9 Check Marks off Dr Greger's Daily Dozen!

Quick and Creamy Kale Couscous

1 cup whole wheat couscous

2 handfuls kale, ripped, stems removed

1/4 cup walnuts, broken in small pieces

1/4 cup flaxseed, ground

6 dates, pitted, chopped

1 cup black beans, in juice

3 Roma tomatoes, chopped

tsp black pepper

1/2 lemon, squeezed

balsamic vinegar (optional)

Start with dry couscous in your serving bowl. Cover couscous in bowling water, top with kale, cover, and let sit for at least 3 minutes (this will cook the couscous!). Chop dates and tomatoes. Combine all ingredients, and enjoy!

Serve with a side of blueberries and a glass of water, and follow your meal with a brisk walk for a dozen check marks from Dr Michael Greger's Daily Dozen!

I'll also share here, one of Dr Greger's newest videos, which by the way made me cry! Tears of complete admiration and gratitude for all that Dr Greger and his nutritional research team do for the health of the world!

BEHIND THE SCENES AT NUTRITIONFACTS.ORG