Food + Family + Friends

Snack

Cottage Cheese and Tomato Toast

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I’m not always ahead of the curve, but aside from my daily smoothies, there are two things I’ve been doing since the late 80’s and 90’s that have been very popular in the 2000’s – adding extra salt to my chocolate chip cookies and making loaded toast.

Salted cookies aren’t going anywhere and neither is loaded toast. Avocado toast is still a menu and household favorite, nut butters with chia and banana will always be a healthy way to start or end the day, but cottage cheese toast with in-season tomatoes is definitely a winner and has been since I was about 10 years old. I’m pretty sure I topped it with a staple seasoning we always had in our house growing up – Santa Maria’s Barbeque Seasoning. Today, I join many other Trader Joe’s devotees in being a big fan of the Everything but the Bagel Seasoning – especially on tomatoes.

I’m writing this at the end of September and I’m still able to find glorious dry-farmed early girl tomatoes at my Bay Area farmer’s market and local fine foods store. I will buy them by the pounds until I no longer see them and all things pumpkin have taken over.  

Since my goal with nearly all meals and snacks is to have a good dose of protein, fat and fiber, this cottage cheese and tomato toast meets all those requirements nicely!  And it’s a lovely way to say goodbye to the last warm days that have given way to chilly mornings and evenings and crazy busy fall schedules.  

Cheers,

Christina

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Cottage Cheese and Tomato Toast

This is a lovely high protein snack with some healthy fat and fiber! Good quality bread, cottage and beautiful summer tomatoes make this a quick and easy snack. Two slices of this loaded toast and a handful of berries makes a satisfying lunch.

Course Snack, vegetarian
Keyword cottage cheese, toast, tomato
Servings 1 slice

Ingredients

  • 1 slice Ezekiel sprouted grain bread, or any good quality bread
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ cup cottage cheese I like Good Culture brand
  • 1 small ripe tomato, sliced
  • Seasonings: Everything but the Bagel and Aleppo Pepper
  • 2 basil leaves, torn or roughly chopped

Instructions

  1. Toast a slice of bread. Drizzle the toast with olive oil and cover with a layer of cottage cheese. Add sliced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Top tomatoes with a sprinkling of Everything but the Bagel Seasoning, Aleppo Pepper and basil leaves.

Power Smoothie

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It seems running out of smoothie names is going to happen well before I run out of sharing smoothie combos that my family enjoys! As I’ve said many times before, my family loves smoothies and literally drinks one every single day. That’s a lot of smoothies over the years! I look at ones I made for them over a decade ago and I am not thrilled that I used pineapple juice, nonfat yogurt (yuck!!) and most lacked greens or healthy added fats – I’ve learned so much in the past 10+ years and I’m proud of the nutrition knowledge I’ve worked so hard to aquire, really upping the smoothie game in our house. Growing teenagers and a long healthy life for my husband and me are my motivation to keep us well nourished.

Enter – the Power Smoothie! The inspiration for this combo is from the Duo Breakfast Menu at the Four Seasons Hotel in Wailea, Maui. Many years ago my husband and I were on a solo trip (sounds so dreamy right now!) and we grabbed a smoothie before our morning hike. They offered a smoothie with almond milk, banana and spinach – a good start, but I had them add peanut butter (before I knew peanut butter hurt my stomach!), coconut flakes and ground flax meal. These ingredients definitely turned it into a real power smoothie, respectable pre-hike fuel, and one we’ve been enjoying at home for years. And today, depending on the need, I’d also add a scoop of quality protein powder to really give us a healthy boost.

I hope you try this and enjoy it as much as we do!

Cheers,

Christina

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Power Smoothie

This smoothie is one of my favorites to make before a family hike, a day of skiing, kid sports or a busy day at work.  It fuels our bodies with healthy fats, protein and fiber to keep us full of energy for hours – and it’s delicious.

Course Breakfast, Drinks, Snack
Keyword power smoothie
Servings 2 servings
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 3 tbsp peanut butter or almond butter
  • 1 frozen banana
  • 1 handful of spinach I love using Power Greens: baby kale, spinach and chard
  • ¼ cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 2 tbsp ground flax meal
  • 1-2 pitted dates
  • 6-8 ice cubes

Instructions

  1. Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth.

Recipe Notes

For an added boost- add a scoop of your favorite protein powder.  I enjoy Truvani’s Organic Plant Based Vanilla Protein Powder

Almond Butter, Banana and Chia Seed Toast

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This is a “no recipe” recipe… but writing it down is a good way for me to remind myself about a great dish or send to a friend! Some time ago we were in Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho and found ourselves at this darling coffee shop called Vault Coffee. They had a great toast menu and flavorful coffee and we enjoyed our breakfast so much we returned twice on our short visit.

As always, I made a note of my delicious toast and upon returning home began making it regularly. I love the subtle flavor of coconut oil spread on the warm toast and the crunchy chia seeds sprinkled on top – a satisfying meal that will keep you fuller longer than plain ‘ole buttered toast (as good as that sometimes is!)

Cheers,

Christina

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Almond Butter, Banana and Chia Seed Toast

Who doesn't love toast? This healthy version is a great way to start the day or enjoy as a mid-afternoon snack. Adaptable to all kinds of breads, my go to choices are Heavy Seeded Rye Bread from my favorite local bakery, Backhaus, or Food for Life's Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin Sprouted Whole Grain Bread.

Course Breakfast, Snack
Keyword toast
Servings 1 serving
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • 2 slices bread, toasted
  • 1 tsp unrefined coconut oil
  • 2 tbsp almond butter
  • ½ banana, sliced
  • 1 tsp chia seeds
  • drizzle of honey optional

Instructions

  1. Since the coconut oil is solid, be sure to spread immediately on the warm toasted bread. Divide the almond butter, banana slices and chia seeds among the slices. If desired, drizzle with a bit of honey and enjoy!

Cantaloupe Banana Smoothie

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The most used appliance in our house is our Vitamix… this is not a paid sponsorship, but rather a ode to my favorite appliance for almost 15 years. Each day, this well loved kitchen friend produces smoothie after healthy smoothie, velvety soups and sauces, smooth muffin batter, chunky dips and spreads, and even the best banana milkshake I’ve ever had.

Many years ago, before we had a Vitamix, but still a high quality blender, my husband used some overly ripe cantaloupe and a banana and threw it in the blender with some rice milk (what we drank at the time) and a few ice cubes and produced the most refreshing afternoon snack. To this day, it remains one of our most simple, refreshing smoothies during the summer months when melon is at its peak. Honeydew is an equally delicious substitution and often gets mixed with matcha green tea powder for a great afternoon pick me up – recipe to come!

I hope you enjoy this simple and delicious smoothie.

Cheers,

Christina

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Cantaloupe Banana Smoothie

A simple, refreshing smoothie during the summer months! It's a perfect afternoon snack to cool down and rehydrate after some fun in the sun. Honeydew is an excellent substitution and one we make all the time. Enjoy!

Course Beverages
Keyword cantaloupe, smoothie
Servings 2 servings
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cantaloupe chunks
  • 2 bananas
  • ¼ cup almond milk any dairy or nondairy beverage should work well
  • 5 ice cubes

Instructions

  1. Add all ingredients and blend until smooth.

Cherry Peach Smoothie

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This refreshing smoothie is one of my favorite summer smoothies.  The fresh peach and mint are such a great flavor combination. During the summer, I buy extra peaches each week and wait for them to get almost too ripe before transferring them to the refrigerator – this way I have them always ready for this smoothie.  Note: while ripe fresh nectarines also work well, frozen peaches do not.  They just don’t have enough ripe flavor!  

As always, a high powered blender such as a Vitamix is key to making the best smoothie texture.  We were recently on vacation in Lake Tahoe and while the kitchen in our rented home was one of the most stocked kitchens I’ve ever been in (for a rental), our smoothies just weren’t the same without a good blender.  There were chunks of peach peel and ice that just never blended – it was still very drinkable with good flavor, but generally not as enjoyable as usual.  

Here’s to ripe summer fruits and healthy summer snacks!

Cheers,

Christina

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Cherry Peach Smoothie

This refreshing smoothie is one of my favorites for summer. Fresh peach and mint are such a great flavor combination. During the summer, I buy extra peaches each week and wait for them to get almost too ripe before transferring them to the refrigerator – this way I have them always ready for this smoothie. Note: while fresh nectarines work well, frozen peaches do not. They just don't have enough flavor to make this tasty.

Course Breakfast, Snack
Keyword smoothie
Servings 2 servings
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup almond milk any dairy or non-dairy milk will work
  • ¼ cup plain Greek whole or lowfat yogurt
  • 1½ cups frozen cherries
  • 2 fresh peaches, cut up
  • 1 banana, cut up
  • 2 tbsp ground flaxseed
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 10-12 fresh mint leaves
  • 3-4 ice cubes

Instructions

  1. Place ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Energy Bites

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Summer is in full swing, and that means so is the snacking! These power bites are a great addition to your family’s snacking repertoire – whether you’ve got long days of entertaining the kids at home, teenagers logging in for summer distance learning or are hitting the road to safely shelter out of place this summer. 

Perfectly portable snack

Recently, I had the opportunity to contribute an article on snacking in the June issue of our sweet, local magazine, Hillsborough Living.  The magazine is written for and by Hillsborough residents, and it was an honor to submit articles in the May (fridge foraging- frittatas) and June issues. With so many of us spending so much time at home the past few months and likely more time at home this summer, this month’s article on snacking seemed like a timely submission.  I hope you find some helpful tips on the list of snack ideas! 

Cheers,

Christina

Hillsborough Living magazine, June 2020
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Energy Bites

These are a great snack to keep in the refrigerator any time of the year. They are quick to make, portable and a healthy alternative to packaged granola bars and power bars that are often high in sugar and additives. Making a double recipe is not a bad idea- they go fast!

Course Snack
Keyword energy bites
Servings 18 bites
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
  • ½ cup ground flaxseed meal
  • ½ cup nut butter such as peanut or almond
  • ¼ cup toasted coconut
  • 2 tbsp chocolate chips
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup or honey
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • ½ tsp vanilla
  • ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ kosher salt

Instructions

  1. In a medium bowl, add all ingredients and combine thoroughly. Using a tablespoon, scoop into 18 balls- adding a drizzle more of maple syrup or spoon of nut butter if mixture is too dry to hold together. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to set.

Spiced Rosemary Bar Nuts

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This snack is a house favorite! During shelter in place it’s been the perfect complement to Zoom cocktail hour with friends. In pre-COVID-19 days, it served as the most perfect bite to offer guests when they arrived at our home.  The ingredients are ones I always have on hand – nuts in the freezer, salt/spices in the pantry, maple syrup and butter in the refrigerator, rosemary bush in the front yard.  I highly recommend you keep these on hand as well! As for the rosemary bush, if you don’t have one yourself, I can pretty much guarantee a neighbor of yours does and wouldn’t mind a little container of these as a return favor.

Cheers,

Christina

Easy ingredients to keep on hand
My favorite mix but any will work
Perfect blend of herbs and spices
Whisk melted butter and maple syrup that nicely coats the nut mixture
Quick toss to coat the nuts- best served warm
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Spiced Rosemary Bar Nuts

Perfectly Spicy, Salty, Sweet snack to enjoy with a cocktail. An unexpected and delightful treat for your guests. These are best served warm but very delicious at room temperature as well. Adapted from Union Square Cafe

Course Appetizer, Snack
Keyword bar nuts
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ cups unsalted raw mixed nuts walnuts, cashews, and pecans are a great combo; Trader Joe’s has Fancy Mixed Raw Nuts that would work well
  • 1-2 tablespoons fresh chopped rosemary
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • pinch Maldon salt optional

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325°

  2. Line baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Toast nuts on baking sheet in oven until golden, about 8-10 minutes.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine rosemary, cayenne pepper, dark brown sugar, and salt.
  4. Just before pulling the nuts from the oven, melt butter in a heat-proof microwave safe bowl. Immediately add the maple syrup to the butter and whisk together until completely combined. Pour butter mixture and toasted warm nuts into the spice mixture and toss to coat thoroughly. Sprinkle with a pinch of Maldon salt, if using.
  5. Enjoy warm.

Carrot Apple Muffins

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For most of us with kids, a synonymous word with summer is the word snack.  They begin early in the morning where a typical breakfast teeters on the brink of being snack #1 and #2 of the day.  During the lazy days of summer, I rarely see my kids with an actual meal in the morning, unless I deliberately prepare one.  I don’t mind this way of eating – I’m a huge fan of snacks! The healthy ones, of course- but it seems non-stop in the summer.  I do know that if I prepare a smoothie in the morning and have some muffins waiting in the fridge, I can be sure the first snacks of the day often resemble a nutritious breakfast.

We are big fans of muffins in my house- we usually have a few on rotation.  Not the typical cake-like muffin that’s laden with sugar and few, if any nutrients, but the high fiber muffins that you can feel good about.  These carrot apple muffins are as delicious as my Everything Muffin recipe that I have on the website, but have fewer ingredients and are not as dense.  They are wheat-free, as the flour is made from ground oats and walnuts, are high in fiber with carrots, apples and flaxmeal as well as lower in sugar with the use of dates.  If your food processor or blender has the capacity for it, I highly recommend making a double batch – 12 muffins certainly don’t last long in my house!

Cheers,

Christina

A double batch- testing the limits on my blender’s capacity
This batch was made in a food processor – they have a bit more texture than those made in a blender
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Carrot Apple Muffins

My family cannot get enough of these tasty muffins. A perfect snack or breakfast- these high fiber muffins are simple to make in a blender or a food processor and chalk full of nutrients. A smear of almond or peanut butter make these especially satisfying. This recipe makes a dozen muffins but I always double. They keep well in the refrigerator for several days tasting just as delicious as the day they were made – not every muffin is so lucky!

Course Breakfast, Snack
Keyword muffin
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • ½ cup walnuts
  • 2 cups old fashioned oats
  • 1 cup peeled, shredded carrots
  • 1 cup diced apples, skin on
  • 5 dates, cut in half and pit removed
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup coconut oil, melted
  • ¼-½ cup almond milk any dairy or non-dairy will work
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp flaxseed meal
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350° and grease or line muffin tin.

  2. In a blender or food processor, add walnuts and oats and blend until finely ground.

  3. Add all other ingredients and process until well combined.

  4. Scoop batter with an ice cream scoop into muffin tins. Bake until lightly golden, about 20-22 minutes.

Berry Banana Smoothie

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I cannot count how many smoothies we’ve made over the years, but I can safely say it’s in the thousands.  My husband and I made them almost daily when we were first married and haven’t stopped since.  The early days of smoothie making always began with some frozen fruit and some type of liquid (usually rice or soy milk), but always had some mystery ingredient such as cinnamon or chili pepper and a few times tamarind.  We got pretty creative. We even had dreams of pre-packaging smoothie “pouches” and marketing them.  Almost 18 years later, from the looks of the freezer aisle and smoothie delivery companies, we were on to something.  Oh well…

Fast forward 18 years and 3 kids later we are still making smoothies – literally every single day for 18 years, there is some sort of smoothie made in our home for breakfast, lunch, snack or accompanying a frittata for a quick and easy dinner.  To say that our trusty and pricey Vita-Mix we’ve owned for almost 15 years was a good investment, in an understatement.  Our only upgrade was one that we were gifted a few years ago and has multiple speeds which is pretty necessary if you use it for soups and sauces – high and low just doesn’t cut it for these tasks! Our Vita-Mix is an essential tool in our kitchen.

The funny part is for all these years not one person in our family has measured out ingredients.  We can all successfully eyeball the ingredients and make enough smoothie for anyone in the house – either 2 tall glasses enough for a meal or 4-5 small snack glasses.  In our house, there’s no such thing as making a smoothie for one… 

Cheers,

Christina

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Berry Banana Smoothie

This beautiful purple smoothie is both satisfying and packed with nutritious vitamins and minerals. Blueberries are high in fiber and vitamin C and the spinach gives the smoothie a boost of nutrition with vitamin C, folate, and iron. Bananas give a healthy dose of potassium as well as fiber. And a little Greek yogurt for protein makes this a perfect way to start the day or midday snack.

Course Beverages
Servings 2
Author Christina Shoup

Ingredients

  • ½ cup almond milk
  • ¼ cup plain, whole milk Greek yogurt
  • 1 banana
  • 1 heaping cup frozen blueberries
  • 1 handful spinach
  • ½ tsp honey
  • 1 tbsp ground flaxseed meal
  • 2 ice cubes

Instructions

  1. Place ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.