Anyone else notice that Birch Benders came out with a couple new paleo pancake and waffle mixes!? Along with their original Paleo version that I use pretty frequently to make these Paleo Blueberry Pancake Muffins, they now have a Paleo Banana and Pumpkin Spice mix! The Birch Benders website lists that both new products can be found at Whole Foods, and after looking at my local Whole Foods store all month I finally found the Banana Paleo Pancake & Waffle Mix! These mixes only require adding water, but I also always add a scoop of Paleo Protein to get some more protein in the meal, 1 egg (though I have experimented with 2 as well) to make the muffins more fluffy, and some fruit. Since this was a banana mix I figured I'd stick with the banana theme and add a few slices of banana on top of each muffin. This is a super easy meal prep recipe to throw together and they came out smelling and looking amazing! I unfortunately didn't make enough to taste test them myself, but my mom enjoyed them for breakfast and my mother's approval is not easy to get haha! Let me know if you try this new mix out and what you think. 

Paleo Pancake Muffins
Serves: 10-12 muffins
Ingredients:

• 3/4 Cup Birch Benders Banana Paleo Pancake & Waffle Mix! (found at Whole Foods, but can also purchase online)
• 2/3 Cup Water
• 1 egg
• 1 Scoop Protein Powder (optional) (I used a scoop of this Paleo Protein)
• 2 Tbsp 100% Maple Syrup or Honey (optional)
• Optional mix-in ideas:

          o Sliced bananas, or other fruit
          o Enjoy Life Dairy-Free Mini Chocolate Chips
          o Chopped nuts
Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix together all ingredients, minus the optional mix-in’s
2. Spray muffin tin pan with nonstick spray or use muffin liners. Fill ⅔ way full. Top each muffin with your choice of mix-ins.
3. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. (It took me 20 minutes for 10-12 muffins.)

One of my very first blog posts was my Protein Pancake recipe that I used to make every week for breakfast. I seriously loved eating those every morning, but after I started prepping my mom's breakfasts and lunches along with my own, I unfortunately didn't have much time anymore to prep my pancakes too. Anyways, I decided to bring it back for my mom to try and I experimented with this muffin version. The only additional ingredient I used was Flaxseed and that was solely to sneak in some extra nutrients into this meal for her. The recipe below makes 9 muffins and if you are enjoying this as a meal I recommend having at least 3, which puts the meal at 20g Carbs, 8g Fat, and 19g Protein. I personally like using the single serve blade assembly on my Ninja blender because it's easier to clean up, so I ended up just making two batches of the recipe below to get 18 muffins for the week. If you are using a bigger blender though you can easily double the ingredients below. Of note, I ended up filling the muffin tins a little above 2/3 of the way full and although they alarmingly rise in the oven, once they were out of the oven and cooled down they shrunk back down. The bottoms actually shrunk in a lot more then the top, so they turned out looking a little odd, but they still tasted delicious! I'm curious if I need to add more oats of flaxseed to prevent that issue, so I'll most likely be experimenting with this one again. Anyways, this was not only an extremely easy recipe to prep for breakfast, but now my mom is enjoying chocolate muffins all week for breakfast. Happy mom, happy life! Let me know if you try these out please! 

​Protein Pancake Muffins
Servings: 3 muffins = 20C/8F/19P (Makes 9 muffins)
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Gluten-Free Oats (I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Quick Cooking Rolled Oats)
• 2 Tbsp Flaxseed (I used Bob's Red Mill Golden Flaxseed Meal)
• 2/3 cup Egg Whites
• 1 1/4 Scoop Protein Powder (I used 37g of this Paleo Protein)
• 1 Banana
• 2 Tbsp Almond Butter (or other Nut Butter)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix together all ingredients in blender.
2. Spray muffin tin pan with nonstick spray, oil, or use muffin liners and fill ⅔ way full. 
3. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

A Nom Nom Paleo recipe! My sister has made this a couple times and loved it, so she suggested I make it for our mom too. This batch ended up making me 14 muffins, and after talking with my sister we both agreed that the extra 1/3 cup of sweet potato was definitely too much. Other then that though, this recipe as-is turned out pretty tasty! Since I didn't actually eat this though, I am going off my sister's opinion, who doesn't even like sweet potatoes, and my picky mom who devoured these every morning without complaint despite the visible "green things." Anyways though, I asked my sister for her review, and this is what she had to say... "The tuna cakes were the perfect lunch. They were easy to make and they had a sweet-spicy combination. I am not a fan of sweet potatoes at all, but in this recipe they were the perfect combination with the tuna." Let me know if you give them a try and what you think! 

​Spicy Tuna Cakes
Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons melted ghee, divided
• 10 ounces canned albacore tuna packed in water, drained
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced (about ⅓ cup)
• 2 tablespoons finely minced fresh cilantro
• 1⅓ cup mashed baked sweet potato
• finely grated zest from ½ medium lemon
• 1 tablespoon minced jalapeño pepper
• 2 large eggs
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 3 medium lemons, cut into wedges (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, and use a brush to grease a 12-cup regular sized muffin tin with one tablespoon of melted ghee. (Or skip this part and just line the tin with parchment muffin liners!)
2. In a large bowl, mix together the tuna, scallions, and cilantro. Add the mashed sweet potato to the tuna mixture, and gently combine.
3. Then, mix in the lemon zest, jalapeño, the remaining two tablespoons of ghee, eggs, and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. I normally use 1½ teaspoons of Diamond Crystal brand kosher salt, but your taste may vary. (Not sure if you’ve added enough S&P? Take a small portion and fry up a little pancake to see if the seasoning is right!)
4. Use your hands to mix everything together because that way you can make sure that the fish chunks aren’t overly broken up.
5. Scoop a ¼ cup of the mixture into each greased muffin tin cup and flatten with the back of a spoon.
6. Bake the tuna cakes for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out cleanly.
7. Transfer the cakes to a wire rack to cool. The easiest way I’ve found to get them out is to put the wire rack on top of the muffin tin, flip everything upside-down, and tap them gently on the counter. 
8. Grab a lemon wedge and squeeze some juice on your tuna cake before your pop it in your mouth. They’re fantastic right out of the oven. Alternatively, store them in the fridge in a air-tight container for up to four days, and when you’re ready to eat, skillet-fry the cakes in some melted fat over medium heat. Crisp the edges, and you’re good to go.

Original recipe found here

I am currently running our spring nutrition challenge at the gym and we had a potluck this past weekend, so this is what I made for it! A potluck full of delicious Paleo friendly foods... what more could you ask for!? Alright maybe that's just my kind of potluck, but for once I didn't get made fun of for bringing the Paleo dish to the party. Anyways, I selfishly made this one because I've been wanting to try it for a while and it's highest in carbs, which I am always in need of. Not only was this a really simple recipe to make, but it turned out so freakin' delicious! It had more of the consistency of bread rather then a mashed sweet potato and those warm blueberries on top... oh my gosh, just amazing!! The 9x5 loaf pan is small, so I ended up making two loafs for the potluck. I cut each loaf into 8 bars, which put each bar at 13g Carbs, 5g Fat, and 4g Protein (using the measurements I indicated below). I don't know if I would call this breakfast since one bar is definitely not a substantial amount of food, but this was a great snack or post-meal treat. If you think this looks even a little bit yummy, then I definitely recommend you give this one a try! I will for sure be making it again soon.

Paleo Sweet Potato Blueberry Breakfast Bars
Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup mashed sweet potato (I measured 160g)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1/8 cup coconut flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup blueberries (I measured 115g)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Roast or microwave one large sweet potato until soft. Scoop out the inside and reserve 3/4 cup
3. In a medium bowl, combine the mashed sweet potato, vanilla extract, melted coconut oil, raw honey, and egg
4. Add the almond meal, coconut flour, and baking powder. Mix well
5. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan and pour in the batter, pushing it into all the corners and middle of the pan to avoid large air bubbles. Smooth out the top
6. Place the blueberries in a single layer on the top and gently press the berries into the batter
7. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the middle is set
8. Let cool and cut into small bars. Serve immediately or refrigerate to store

​Original recipe found here

I bought this Paleo Baking Company Paleo Banana Bread Cake & Muffin Mix for my mom for Christmas so we could try new breakfast options for her. I actually bought her this mix and the blueberry muffin mix, only to realize that it is the same exact mix and you are required to add the ingredients that make it either banana or blueberry. What a let down... Anyways, as always I snuck a scoop of protein powder into the mix, but you do not have to do that if you don't want to. I also added some cinnamon and salt to this recipe, but besides those three additions, the recipe is what was on the back of the banana mix package. I actually noticed that my package directions differed from the ones below that I got online, so they must have updated their packaging at some point. Nonetheless, the package I received did not have the step below about microwaving the bananas, which I found extremely helpful, so I recommend following the directions below if you purchase this cake and muffin mix. I filled my muffin cups to the max and they did not rise much, but I think next time I would put a tiny bit less batter in. Filling it to the max got me 14 muffins, and I put 5 days worth in the fridge and the remaining muffins in the freezer. My mom absolutely loved these banana muffins and was really happy knowing this was her breakfast all week...which makes me think these definitely tasted like a treat! 

Paleo Banana Bread Muffins
​Ingredients:

• ​Paleo Baking Company Paleo Banana Bread Cake & Muffin Mix 
• 5 eggs
• 2/3 cup Coconut Oil
• 2/3 cup Honey
• 1/3 cup Water
• 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas) 
• 1 scoop Protein Powder (I used this Paleo Protein), optional
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt coconut oil in a microwavable dish until liquid (about 60-90 seconds on high). Allow 2/3 cup liquid coconut oil to cool.
2. Peel and microwave bananas on high for 90 seconds. Allow to cool, then mash into a paste. Measure 1 1/2 cups mashed banana and set aside. Beat eggs on medium speed for 30 seconds, then slowly add cooled liquid coconut oil, honey, and water, mixing until combined. Add Paleo Banana Bread and Muffin Mix, scoop of Protein Powder, cinnamon, and salt to wet ingredients. Mix on medium speed until smooth, then stir in 1 1/2 cups mashed banana until blended.
3. Fill standard muffin pan cups with paper liners (or grease muffin cups), fill cups to full (batter will not rise). For bread loaves lightly grease four 4x6 inch mini loaf pans with extra liquid coconut oil, divide and spread batter evenly into pans.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes (muffins) or 30-40 minutes (bread) until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow muffins/bread to cool completely before moving from pan. Store for up to 5 days in refrigerator or 30 days in the freezer. Baking times may vary.

Recipe from Paleo Baking Company Paleo Banana Bread Cake & Muffin Mix package

These looked extremely simple to make and involved no baking, so I gave them a try for my mom's breakfast meal prep this week. Now I don't think I will make these that often because they are loaded with maple syrup/honey, but they did turn out tasting like a treat! I ended up  using 100% maple syrup over honey and found that I had to add in additional maple syrup and almond butter because my mix was still dry. That might not be the case if you use honey instead though, I am not sure. Either way, I would reduce the gluten free oats to 1/2 cup next time to see if that would eliminate having to add in more syrup and almond butter. Other then that though, these were super easy to make and are a great grab-and-go breakfast or snack option! 

No Bake Cinnamon Vanilla Breakfast Protein Bites
Ingredients:

• 1 heaping TBSP ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup (around 65-75 grams) Vanilla Protein Powder (I used this Paleo Protein)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup or honey if you are not vegan
• 1/2 cup almond meal or peanut flour (you can also just finely grind raw almonds) ·
• 1/3 cup nut butter (creamy no stir works best)
• 3/4 cup of gluten free quick oats 
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Grind up your oats or cereal in a food processor and transfer into a mixing bowl. This is optional. You can keep them whole as well and adjust the addition of honey.
2. Add your almond meal, protein powder, cinnamon, and nut butter. Stir ingredients all together. • Add in your honey and vanilla then mix again well with hands. •
3. You might need to add more honey or nut butter if batter gets to dry. 
4. Roll into 1-1.5 inch balls and place on cookie tray or plastic ware with parchment paper underneath.
5. Let them freeze for 20-30 minutes then transfer into a Ziploc bag.
6. Dust with additional cinnamon and vanilla protein if desired.
7. Keep in fridge or freezer for up to 6 weeks.

Original recipe found here

Changed up my mom's breakfast this week with these sweet potato muffins! They were really simple to make, but the batter was pretty sticky from all the cashew butter, so it was not as quick as I thought it would be. I only added 1-2 Tbsp of 100% maple syrup and I also added a scoop of Paleo Protein to get some more protein in these muffins. There are also ingredients and directions for making frosting if you want to top these muffins off, but I chose not to add any. Unfortunately I had to resist all temptation to taste test these since I made these for my mom to eat for breakfast all week. They turned out looking and smelling amazing though and I have a feeling this one will be a repeat. Let me know if you give this recipe a try and what you think!

​Paleo Blender Sweet Potato Muffins
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 large eggs
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup 
• 1 cup smooth cashew butter (can sub for any nut or seed butter)
• 1/2 cup mashed sweet potato

Frosting (optional)
For the high protein frosting

• 2 scoops vanilla protein powder 
• 1-2 T granulated sweetener of choice (optional)
• 1-2 T nut butter of choice (optional)
• Milk to form batter

For the coconut butter frosting

• 1/2 cup coconut butter, melted
• 2 T coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 10-12 muffin tins with patty pans and set aside.
2. In a high speed blender, combine all your ingredients and blend until a fine batter is formed. If your nut butter is not smooth enough, you may want to melt it slightly beforehand.
3. Divide the batter amongst the muffin tin and bake as follows- For the grain free option, you'd need 20-25 minutes (depending on your oven brand). For the oat based version, you'll be looking at 25-30 minutes. Ensure you check by inserting a skewer and once clean, they are done.
4. Remove from oven and allow to cool in muffin tin for 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, top with frosting of choice if desired.

Original recipe found here

After a couple trips this summer with friends I was finally introduced to the amazing Açaí bowl! Since I haven't come across any places near me that sell these (probably a good thing), I decided to try making my own (definitely a better thing) and they are too awesome not to share! The main ingredient you need to find is the frozen Açaí packets. I found the Sambazon Superfruit Pack (Unsweetened) at my local natural and organic food market. I have also seen these packs at Wegman's and their website lists that they are sold at Whole Food's, Costco, Safeway, and a few other stores. Trader Joe's also sells Unsweetened Organic Açaí Purée Packets, which is another good and unsweetened option. Anyways, once you have that you can blend it with any frozen or unfrozen fruits to get your base. Then, all you need to do is top it with your favorite ingredients! I made my own Rawnola to top this with and provided that recipe below. If you do not feel like making your own Rawnola, here are a few options you can purchase that I have come across:

• Seven Sundays Blueberry Chia Buckwheat Muesli (found this at my local grocery store in the "Natural Food" aisle)
• Steve's PaleoGoods PaleoKrunch Cereal (found this at Whole Food's)
• Paleonola (found this at Whole Food's)
• Bobs Red Mill Cereal Muesli Paleo (I have not seen this in stores, but if you have let me know!)

The first three options listed also have different flavors of mixes too. Anyways, those are just my recommendations! My first couple attempts at the Açaí bowl turned out more like a smoothie, so the ingredients I listed below gave me the best thickness. Another tasty option is to replace the water/coconut milk by blending a juicy fruit first and using that as the liquid to blend with the frozen Açaí  pack and any other frozen fruits you may have. Some good juicy fruits are pineapple, watermelon, oranges, kiwi, papaya, mangoes, and the list goes on. Just thinking about all those fruits makes me want an Açaí bowl. Let me know if you try this out and what ingredient combinations you used! 

Homemade Açaí Bowl
Ingredients:
Açaí mix:

• Sambazon Superfruit Pack (Unsweetened) 
• 1/2 cup Frozen Blueberries
• 1/2 Frozen Banana
• 4 oz Water or Coconut Milk

Toppings:

• 1/2 Cup Rawnola (or however much you want)
• Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
• Any fruit
• Any nut butter
• Honey

Directions:

1. Run Açaí packet under hot water until you can break into pieces.
2. Place those frozen pieces into a blender with frozen blueberries, banana, and water (or whatever liquid you choose). Blend until desired consistency is reached. 
3. Pour blended mix into a bowl. Top with your desired toppings!

Homemade Rawnola:
Ingredients:

• 4 oz Pitted Dates
• 1 1/2 cup of Gluten Free Rolled Oats
• 1/4 cup Shredded Coconut Unsweetened
• 1/4 cup Pumpkin Seeds
• 1/4 cup Hemp Seeds
• 1/2 Tbsp Cacao Powder

Directions:

1. Using your large food processor, add all ingredients.
2. Blend and pulse until desired consistency.
3. Optional: To make it more sticky you can add a small drizzle of maple syrup or honey while pulsing. I did not do this.
4. Store in glass jar in the fridge for 2 weeks.

Note: This made me about 7 servings at 209 calories, 8 grams of Fat, 28 grams of Carbs, and 7 grams of Protein. 

Had a last minute request by my mom for a breakfast change the other week, so I got resourceful with what I had in the fridge and tried this smoothie combination. Now she does not like coconut whatsoever, but so far she has enjoyed all of my recipes that use coconut milk and coconut oil, and she even loves the paleo-approved coconut macaroons that I give her. Of course if I told her there was coconut in them she probably would not enjoy them, but what she doesn't know doesn't hurt her, right? Anyways, I say all of that because this is a coconut milk based smoothie, and you can barely taste the coconut. I made this one for myself as a treat last week and I am obsessed. This smoothie is incredible! I highly suggest using the SO Delicious Original Culinary Coconut Milk and you can even get the light version if you want less fat. It is not stored in the refrigerated aisles at the grocery store, but with the canned coconut milk wherever that aisle is at in your local store. This recipe makes one serving, and the water amount is an estimate; add more or less as you wish to make the smoothie less thick. My mom absolutely loved this smoothie for breakfast, so I went ahead and prepped a few more to put in the freezer. If you freeze this I suggest taking it out first thing in the morning to let it thaw out, so you can actually enjoy it as a smoothie. If not, grab a spoon and enjoy an ice cream like treat for breakfast. Either way though, this was by far the easiest breakfast prep I have ever made! If you forget to meal prep you can quickly make this the night before or in the morning if you have the time.
​
​Strawberry Pineapple Coconut Smoothie
Ingredients:

• ½ cup coconut milk (I use SO Delicious Original Culinary Coconut Milk)
• ½ cup water
• 2.5 ounces frozen fresh chopped pineapple
• 2 ounces frozen fresh chopped strawberries
• ½ - 1 scoop Protein Powder (I used this Paleo Protein), optional

Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients to your blender. Place the lid on and puree (use the “smoothie setting” if your blender has one) until smooth and desired consistency is reached.
2. Serve immediately, or portion into freezer safe canning jars and store in the freezer for later use.
3. If desired, garnish with a wedge of fresh pineapple and/or strawberry.
4. Enjoy!

Cooking for my mom and making her eat paleo means I need to find foods that keep her happy and that means making snacks and sweets for her too. I have now made this recipe a couple times for her and not only does she love them, but so do I! Although I am not the biggest fan of baking paleo goods (just because they are still "treats"), this is an opportunity for me to sneak a scoop of protein powder in the mix. It's not much, but the more protein I can get that woman to eat the better. For this batch I added the optional 2 tbsp of pure maple syrup, 1 scoop of Paleo Protein, and 3-4 Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks to each muffin and this recipe yielded 14 muffins, at close to 16.3g Carbs, 8.7g Fat, and 5.2g Protein per muffin. I rarely include macro numbers for my meals, but since baking requires you to be accurate with measuring ingredients and I made exactly 14 even-looking muffins, it was a little easier to provide macros for. Of note, if you don't add the protein scoop I think this recipe would yield 12 muffins. Alright I'm done rambling. Let some of your bananas ripen and give this recipe a try!

Paleo Banana Muffins
Ingredients:

• 4 ripe organic bananas, mashed
• 4 organic cage-free eggs
• ½ cup organic almond or coconut flour
• 2 tablespoons organic coconut oil, melted (where to buy)
• 1 teaspoon organic real vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons ground organic cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground organic nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground organic clove
• ¼ teaspoon ground organic ginger
• 1 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Optional: 1-2 Tablespoons organic honey or maple syrup
• Optional: 1 scoop Protein powder (I used this Paleo Protein)
• Optional: Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl, mash the bananas well. I used my stand mixer and a wire whisk to mash the bananas, and then just added all the ingredients to the bowl.
3. Add the eggs and beat well.
4. Add the melted coconut oil and vanilla, and mix again.
5. Mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl and add them a little at a time to the banana mixture. Mix well.
6. Line a muffin tin with cup cake liners. Spoon batter into each cup, filling them nearly to the top.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until they begin to brown and a knife inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
8. Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes. Take them out of the tin and let them cool all the way on a wire rack (this is important, because if you leave them in the muffin tin the papers will get soggy).
9. These muffins taste the best while they are warm. Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container, I suggest reheating them a little before eating them after they've cooled. Enjoy!

Original recipe found here