Chocolate Almond Butter Banana Smoothie

Anxious.

Excited.

Nervous.

Yup, I'd have to say that I'm very anxious, excited, and nervous!

Tomorrow is my next OB appointment. And it's the appointment. The one that we've been impatiently waiting for the past 4 months. We're finding out the gender! Boy or girl?! Pink or blue?! Plus, we get to make sure that our little bean mango (our fruit comparison for week 19) is happy and healthy. I just can't wait to start buying baby clothes, decorate the nursery, and not have to refer to the baby as "it."

Just one. more. day.

I started off my day with a delicious concoction of a three of my favorite things - bananas, chocolate, and almond butter. These days I find myself craving dessert at all times of the day. Sad thing is, I'm pretty sure it was pretty much the same pre-pregnancy. Either way, this smoothie is a great, healthier way to satisfy my sweet cravings which seem to be never ending.

I recommend using frozen bananas, if possible. Generally, when I see that my bananas are getting pretty ripe and probably won't get ate or used before they are too ripe, I'll freeze them for smoothies or "ice cream." If you use frozen bananas, you don't need to use as much ice. Also, if the smoothie isn't sweet enough for you, feel free to add some honey or agave. You could even replace the cocoa powder with a sweetened chocolate milk powder, like Nesquik. Just see what you prefer!

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk (I use refrigerated coconut milk or almond milk)
• 1-2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1-2 tbsp almond butter or your favorite nut butter
• 1 medium ripe banana
• Ice

Instructions

• Combine milk, cocoa powder, almond butter, and banana in a blender. (Start out with 1 tbsp each of cocoa powder and almond butter.)
• Blend on medium speed until well blended.
• Add ice. Start with less ice, as you can always add more. You don't need a lot of ice if your banana is frozen.
• Blend until smooth and frothy.
• Taste. Add another tbsp of cocoa powder and/or almond butter if desired. Blend until smooth.

Banana Quinoa Granola Parfait

By now I'm sure that you've heard about the many wonders of quinoa - protein, fiber, iron, and more! So have you tried it yet? If you haven't, you should. At first I was a bit intimidated by it, but have discovered that it's nothing to be scared of. It's simple to make and delicious. While many quinoa recipes are savory, there is also a sweet side to this ancient little seed. This recipe is a great example of that.

The best part about this recipe is that it takes a simple coconut almond granola and makes it that much more nutritious simply by adding quinoa! Plus, with a dollop of whipped cream this breakfast parfait becomes dessert!

Ingredients

Quinoa Granola
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup quinoa, rinsed well and dried
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 1/2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Bananas
• 3 Bananas, sliced
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Yogurt
• 2 cups vanilla yogurt

Instructions

Quinoa Granola
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, combine oats, quinoa, almonds, coconut, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
• Mix in honey, coconut oil, and vanilla.
• Spread evenly onto a cookie sheet.
• Bake for 10 minutes, then stir. Bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
Bananas
• In a small bowl, gently toss bananas in maple syrup and cinnamon.
Assembly
• In the bottom of 4 bowls/parfait cups/mason jars, spoon in 1/4 cup yogurt.
• Spoon in a layer of bananas and a layer of granola.
• Repeat with 1/4 cup yogurt, bananas, and top with granola.

Cranberry Cheesecake with Oatmeal Cookie Crust

I have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. I have been blessed in so many ways. Even though I'm sad that my family could not be together today, I had a wonderful day at home hosting my amazing in-laws.

Oh man... I'm full. Really, really full. Sad thing is, it's been several hours since I finished eating. I made a lot of food today. Not only was this my very first attempt at making a turkey, but also my first time to make the entire meal. I sure had fun making it, but man am I exhausted. I mean, I. am. warn. out. In case you were wondering, here's a recap of today's menu:

• Roasted Turkey


• Mashed Potatoes


• Gravy


• Stuffing (from scratch)


• Green Bean Casserole (from scratch)


• Mac and Cheese (from scratch)


• Rolls (from scratch)


• Sweet Potato Pie (crust and filling from scratch)


• Whipped Cream (from scratch)

and last, but not least...

• Cranberry Cheesecake with Oatmeal Cookie Crust

Of all these options, I've decided to highlight the cheesecake in today's post. I admit, I seriously failed at posting recipes for Thanksgiving. Please forgive me. Maybe I'll do a bit better for Christmas? I'll attempt to begin making it up to you by providing you with this deliciously amazing cheesecake. A few months back I wanted to make a cheesecake to bring over to my neighbor's for dinner. Lucky for me, my mother-in-law has a mean cheesecake recipe. I'm so glad I got it from her. It is to-die-for. Her recipe calls for a graham cracker crust, which is what I usually use, but the other day on the Cooking Channel I saw a cheesecake made with an oatmeal cookie crust. I was so intrigued, I had to try it.

How do you feel about cranberry sauce? My family has always had it on the Thanksgiving table, but I've never cared for it. I do like cranberries though. So instead of topping this with a canned pie filling, I decided not to leave cranberries behind and made a cranberry compote. It makes a great sweet and tangy topping for the cheesecake.

Ingredients

For Crust
• 3/4 cup oats
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract.
• 1/2 unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
For Cheesecake
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 eggs
• 1 (16 oz) container sour cream
• 3 1/2 (8 oz) cream cheese bars, room temperature
For Compote
• 2 cups fresh cranberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Instructions

For Crust
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a cookie sheet.
• In a medium bowl, stir together oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream 1/4 cup butter with sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract.
• Add oat/flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until flour is incorporated.
• Spread the cookie dough onto the prepared cookie sheet until about 1/2 inch thick.
• Bake for 17-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Allow to cool on the baking sheet.
• After the cookie has cooled, place in a large freezer bag.
• Crush to small crumbs (the same as you would for a graham cracker crust) and pour in 1/2 cup melted butter and 1/2 tsp cinnamon.
• Once the butter and cinnamon are well incorporated into the cookie crumbs, dump the mixture into a spring form pan.
• Press the mixture firmly onto the bottom and slightly up the sides of the pan. Set aside.
For Cheesecake
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, on low speed, blend eggs, sugar, vanilla, almond, lemon juice, and salt until fluffy (about 1 ½ to 2 min).
• Blend in sour cream.
• Cut each cream cheese bar into quarters and add a quarter at a time to mixture while mixer is on.
• Pour over the cookie crust.
• Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until the edges are slightly brown.
• Turn the oven off and prop open the oven door.
• Allow the cheesecake to cool completely in the oven.
• Move the cheesecake to the refrigerator and cool overnight or for at least 4 hours.
For Compote
• Place cranberries, sugar, orange zest, and 1/4 cup water in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
• In a small bowl, stir together water and cornstarch. Add to the saucepan.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer until cranberries soften and begin to "pop."
• Remove from heat and cool completely.
• Serve over cheesecake.