Recipe of the Week: Chocolate-Banana Muffins

We just created this healthy muffin recipe that also fulfills that *need* for chocolate. Eat them for breakfast or any old time for a snack. Bon Appetito!

Ingredients:
-2 eggs, beaten
-3/4 cup milk
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-2 ripe bananas, smashed
-2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
-1/2 cup dark chocolate, melted
Garnishes: unsweetened coconut, chocolate chips, chopped nuts

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the wet ingredients together: eggs, milk, bananas.
2. Add the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, evaporated cane juice.
3. Melt the chocolate and add to the mixture.
4. Grease muffin pans or add paper liners. Fill each cup halfway with batter.
5. Sprinkle with nuts, coconut or chocolate chips if desired. Bake approximately 15 minutes.

Menu Planner

This week's menus incoporate some of the summer's fresh produce like eggplant, romaine lettuce, zucchini and carrots. These are great for pizza, wraps and taco fillings. Since we're spending the next six weeks in Virginia, we also decided to check out some local fruit, including peaches we picked up in South Carolina on the way here. They are not quite as big and sweet as Fresno peaches we get at our market but it's early in the season.

sun:
Spanish paella
Fruit salad
French bread

mon:
Vegetable pizza
Peach Crisp

tues:
Whole wheat turkey wraps
with kale and corn salsa
Romaine salad

wed:
Chicken Cordon bleu
Garlic potatoes

thurs:
Thai vegetable curry
Basmati rice blend
Asian cabbage salad

fri:
Luscious Leftovers

sat:
Buffalo tacos
Rice
Beans

Camping Menus: How to eat healthy and homey out in the wilderness

Our family loves camping in the summer. When I was a little girl we used to always take road trips to different cities in the U.S. and camp along the way. Now that I have my own family we are continuing the tradition and sometimes recruiting friends and family for the festivities. We just returned from a camping trip in Bishop, California, and we're headed out this weekend to Mono Hot Springs. We thought we'd share some of our fave camping meals based on quantities for a family of four.

Meal #1:
Whole Wheat Chicken Fajitas
with red peppers, onions, black olives, corn
served with guacamole and chips

What to bring for fajitas:
-2 boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
-salt and pepper
-1/2 lime (reserve other half for guacamole)
-1 red pepper, cut into strips
-1 yellow onion, chopped
-1 small can black olives
-1 can corn
-olive oil or butter
-1 dozen whole wheat tortillas
-1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Heat the chicken in a skillet with oil or butter. Squeeze lime on top. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. In a pot or different skillet, saute pepper, onion and corn in olive oil.
3. Meanwhile heat tortillas over the chicken skillet or on a grill over the fire.
4. Set up a fajita-building station and serve with guacamole & chips.

For guacamole:
Trader Joe's sells a "guacamole kit," including all these neccesities and then you need your own spices.
-2 avocadoes
-1 lime
-1 green onion or shallot, chopped
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1 tomato, diced
-1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper
-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (to taste)
-blue organic tortilla chips
-1 small bunch cilantro or 1 teaspoon dried cilantro

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Mush together with a fork and serve.

Meal #2:
Lamb Stew
served with Couscous

Meal #3:
Chicken Sausage Jambalaya
served with Brown Rice

Meal #4:
Teriyaki Burgers on Whole wheat buns
served with grilled pineapple slices
Baby Greens salad with walnuts and dried cranberries

Meal #5:
Everything eggs
served with Pita Bread