Keeping the Kitchen Busy

I easily checked off one of my 'healthy to-do list' items from last week trying several new recipes! Since I'm still getting used to this whole 'cooking thing,' I often look to cookbooks and other blogs for recipes and inspiration. These two recipes came from awesome blogs, with a few alterations.

Black Bean Burgers:
Adapted from a recipe (makes 2) on Kath's blog, these burgers were really simple to make and I know I'll be making them again soon -
1cup black beans, rinsed and drained
2.5tbs whole wheat flour
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1tsp evoo
Chipotle powder to taste
Ground black pepper to taste
Worcestershire sauce to taste

Mash black beans and mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Divide in two and shape into patties. Then, place in a skillet sprayed with cooking spray and heat until each side is browned.

Since this was my first try, I'm going to make just two changes next time around: 3tbs whole wheat flour (because I used a bit more black beans than the recipe called for - the burgers were going to be too small to satisfy Woody) and I'd cook them a bit longer because the middle was a bit soft.

We had Russian Kale and grape tomatoes on the side; I spread avocado on the sandwich thin and topped with lettuce and onion. (Sorry the pic is a bit blurry)

On Saturday, wanting a healthy but cool treat to beat this insane heat wave, I had fun trying this recipe from Oh She Glows!

First, I had to set the mood with some music.

Then the cooking smashing and mashing began. My recipe for Frosty No-bake Glo Cakes ended up like this:
1 large banana
1/2cup oats
1/4cup rice crisp cereal
1tbs maple syrup
1tbs peanut butter
1tbs cacao nibs
1tsp cocoa powder
2tsp ground flax seeds
1tsp sunflower seeds
1tbs chopped dried cherries

I mashed the banana (a potato masher would probably make this part go very quickly, but we don't have one...yet) then add the maple syrup and peanut butter and mix thoroughly. Add the dry ingredients and continue mixing.

Then fill four muffin liners with the mixture and freeze until hard.

Because they melt quickly, these are not ideal treats for bbq's or outdoor parties. They were pretty delicious though! We each had one last night and saved the other two for tonight. I loved adding a little Michigan flavor with the dried cherries and flax seeds for a healthy boost!

Since they are pretty soft and melty, I may add a little more rice crisps. Other readers of Oh She Glows suggested using more crunchy cereal like grapenuts. Sounds like a good idea, although I didn't mind too much that it wasn't super crunchy. Next time I also might add a little more peanut butter, or even better, try it with Dark Chocolate Dreams! This is a great recipe because you can really make it to suit your own taste and cravings!

Let me know if you try either of these recipes; I'd love to hear how you made them your own and how they turned out!

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workout stats -
July 25
Yoga
July 26
2.5miles walk/jog intervals
13miles bike
3x10 weighted side bends
3x10 lateral arm raise
3x10 upright row
3x10 forward arm raise
3x10 bicep curls
stretching