DETROIT – This week, nutrition expert Julie Feldman offers recipes such as breakfast yogurt parfait, three-ingredient mini tuna balls, vegan mini black bean taco cups and baked cauliflower bites.
Breakfast Yogurt Parfait in a Jar
Ingredients
• 1 cup grapes or mixed berries
• 1/2 banana, chopped
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup KIND healthy grains
• 1/2 cup Yoplait 100-calorie greek yogurt, or Chobani 100-calorie greek yogurt
Directions
Place a layer of berries or grapes on the bottom of the jar, add a layer of yogurt, a layer of granola, a layer of fruit, another layer of yogurt and a layer of the shredded coconut. Cap the jar, and off you go.
3 Ingredient Mini Tuna Balls
Ingredients
• 5-6 oz of tuna, pouch or canned - drained
• 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs (gluten free if necessary)
• 1.5 tablespoons of sun-dried tomato dressing (or favorite Italian dressing)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease or line a baking sheet.
2. In a medium size bowl, work the tuna with a fork breaking apart the chunks.
3. Add breadcrumbs and dressing. Mix thoroughly until tuna is moistened and smooth enough to roll.
4. With your hands, roll the tuna in to 1" diameter balls then place onto baking sheet.
5. Bake for 20 minutes (check for doneness around 15 minutes since oven temperatures vary). Flip once in the middle to keep one side from browning more than the other.
6. Serve warm in a thermos with mac and cheese or room temperature in lunch container.
Vegan Mini Black Bean Taco Cups
Ingredients
• 1 can of black beans (15oz), rinsed and drained well
• ½ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• Toppings/fillings of choice
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray a 24 cup mini-muffin tray with cooking spray.
2. In a blender or food processor, pulse black beans, flour, cumin, paprika, salt, and olive oil in a food until soft dough forms.
3. If dough is too runny, add additional flour 1 tablespoon at a time.
4. Place dough evenly into the 24 mini-muffin cups. Using the backside of a spoon, form mini cups by spreading dough up the sides of each cup.
5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely.
6. Fill cups evenly with toppings of choice.
Baked Cauliflower Bites Recipe
Ingredients
• 1 head of cauliflower, cleaned and diced into florets
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon of parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup of shredded cheese (either cheddar or mozzarella will work)
• ½ teaspoon creole or Italian seasoning, divided
• ¼ teaspoon of salt
• ¼ cup of gluten free panko bread crumbs (plain will work but panko is recommended)
• Optional: 2 tablespoons of ground flax meal
Instructions
1. Place 1 cup of water into a medium size saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Add diced cauliflower florets to water. Cover with lid and reduce to medium.
3. Let cook approximately 15 minutes, until tender.
4. Drain water and let cool approximately 10 minutes.
5. Before mashing, again drain any excess moisture from pan. Add ¼ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of Garlic & Herb Seasoning.
6. Using a potato masher, begin mashing the florets just like you would mashed potatoes.
7. Add ¼ cup of mozzarella cheese and 1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese. Mix together.
8. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
9. In a small bowl, mix together bread crumbs, optional ground flax meal, remaining ¼ teaspoon of garlic & herb Seasoning, and 1 teaspoon of parmesan cheese.
10. Begin forming balls in your hands with the mashed cauliflower mixture, approximately 1" to 1.5" in diameter.
11. Roll ball into bread crumb mixture then place on baking sheet. Repeat until cauliflower mixture is gone.
12. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-28 minutes, until bread crumbs begin to turn golden brown.
13. Serve on a platter with your favorite sauce, such as honey mustard or creamy ranch.