Well this it folks, this upcoming week is our last week of Operation Transformation and so this will be my last week posting healthy recipes. Well done to everyone who has taken part, there has been quite a few pounds lost and we have had some great laughs. This weeks recipes come from a website called Million Hearts and they are Heart-Healthy Recipes.
Creamsicle Breakfast Smoothie
- Makes:
- 2 servings
- Active Time:
- 5 minutes
- Total Time:
- 5 minutes
Though it tastes like those iconic vanilla-and-orange popsicle, this creamsicle breakfast smoothie recipe is a balanced breakfast with carbohydrates, protein and, thanks to the addition of coconut water, essential electrolytes. Coconut water serves up more than 10 percent of your daily dose of potassium—an electrolyte you lose through sweat—in every cup, making it a great hydrate for light workouts. Plus, this creamy orange-mango smoothie only contains about 30 mg of sodium per cup, whereas sports drinks usually deliver about 110 mg of sodium per cup.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cold pure coconut water, without added sugar or flavor (see Tip)
- 1 cup nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt
- 1 cup frozen or fresh mango chunks
- 3 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate
- 2 cups ice
Preparation
- Blend coconut water, yogurt, mango, orange juice concentrate and ice in a blender until smooth.
Tips & Notes
Tip: Look for pure coconut water without added sugar in the refrigerated section near other flavored waters or near shelf-stable waters and natural fruit juices.
Tuscan-Style Tuna Salad
Makes:- 4 servings, 1 cup each
- Active Time:
- 10 minutes
- Total Time:
- 10 minutes
This streamlined version of a northern Italian idea is perfect for no-fuss, no-cook and big taste. You can even make it ahead and store it, covered, in the refrigerator for several days. If you do, use it as a wrap filling for the next day’s lunch.
Ingredients
- 2 6-ounce cans chunk light tuna, drained
- 1 15-ounce can small white beans, such as cannellini or great northern, rinsed (see Ingredient note)
- 10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 4 scallions, trimmed and sliced
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
Preparation
- Combine tuna, beans, tomatoes, scallions, oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir gently. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Tips & Notes
Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Ingredient Note: When you use canned beans in a recipe, be sure to rinse them first in a colander under cold running water, as their canning liquid often contains a fair amount of sodium.
Spicy Beef with Shrimp & Bok Choy
Makes:- 4 servings, about 1 cup each
- Active Time:
- 25 minutes
- Total Time:
- 25 minutes
Oyster sauce and rice wine give this speedy stir-fry a rich flavor that balances the clean, sweet crunch of bok choy. Make It a Meal: Rice noodles or brown basmati rice will make you feel like you’re eating in your favorite Chinese restaurant.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Shao Hsing rice wine, (see Ingredient note)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons oyster-flavored sauce
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 4 teaspoons canola oil, divided
- 3/4 pound sirloin steak, trimmed of fat, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 10 raw shrimp, (21-25 per pound), peeled, deveined and chopped
- 1 pound bok choy, preferably baby bok choy, trimmed and sliced into 1-inch pieces
Preparation
- Whisk rice wine, oyster sauce and cornstarch in a small bowl until the cornstarch is dissolved.
- Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add beef and crushed red pepper to taste; cook, stirring, until the beef begins to brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Add shrimp and continue to cook, stirring, until the shrimp is opaque and pink, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the beef, shrimp and any juices to a plate.
- Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high heat in the same pan. Add bok choy and cook, stirring, until it begins to wilt, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in the cornstarch mixture. Return the beef-shrimp mixture to the pan and cook, stirring, until heated through and the sauce has thickened slightly, about 1 minute.
Tips & Notes
Ingredient Note: Shao Hsing (or Shaoxing) is a seasoned rice wine. It is available in most Asian specialty markets and some larger supermarkets in the Asian section. If unavailable, dry sherry is an acceptable substitute.
Mini Frozen Baklava
Makes:- 15 servings
- Active Time:
- 15 minutes
- Total Time:
- 1 3/4 hours
Try this recipe for frozen mini baklava bites using low-fat frozen yogurt the next time you want to whip up a quick dessert. Shelf-stable mini phyllo cups are widely available, but for this recipe the frozen cups are best.
Ingredients
- 1 cup low-fat vanilla frozen yogurt, softened
- 1/4 cup finely chopped pistachios, plus 15 shelled pistachios, divided
- 15 frozen mini phyllo cups, (1.9-ounce package)
- 4 teaspoons honey
Preparation
- Combine frozen yogurt and pistachios in a medium bowl. Keeping phyllo cups in their plastic tray, fill each with about 2 teaspoons of the frozen yogurt. Drizzle with honey and top with a whole pistachio. Freeze until firm, at least 1 1/2 hours.
Tips & Notes
Make Ahead Tip: Cover and keep in the freezer for up to 3 days.
All these recipes and many more can be found on the Million Hearts websitehttp://recipes.millionhearts.hhs.gov/recipes