Miss Amy's Cinnamon Banana Bread

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things to bake (and eat) was banana bread. I learned early on that the riper the bananas the better (and sweeter) the bread. Fast forward to last week--> I bought some bananas and then managed to totally forget about them. I managed to stumble upon them in my kitchen on Friday, but by then they were all brown and over-ripe. Well, my forgetfulness turned out to be a blessing because I decided to continue poking around my kitchen to see what else I might have on hand. I ended up coming up with this recipe from the ingredients in my fridge and pantry.

Cast of Characters:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temp
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (1 single serving container)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2-3 tsp cinnamon (depending on your preference)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy
3. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated.
4. Mix in Greek yogurt.
5. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
6. Alternate mixing in the mashed banana and the flour mixture. DO NOT OVER MIX! The bread will be tough and rubbery if you do :(
7. Bake for about 60 - 70 minutes. Test to see if the bread is done by inserting a toothpick into the middle of the bread. If it comes out clean, you're good to go. If it comes out with batter on it, keep the bread in a bit longer.

If you really like banana nut bread, try folding in about 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans into the batter before baking. Enjoy!

Strawberry Smoothie

Summer is the perfect time for smoothies. When in a hurry, I used to run by somewhere like Smoothie King to get a liquid lunch. Little did I know, the smoothie I typically got was 400 calories! And some of their smoothies are more than 1,000 calories for a small! After this little discovery, I thought it may be best to stay away from smoothies, but that's easier said than done, so instead I created my own healthier alternative.

Cast of Characters:

• 1 cup frozen strawberries
• 1/2 cup nonfat milk
• 6 oz fat free vanilla yogurt

Directions:

1. Blend well in your blender (works best if frozen strawberries are on the bottom)
2. Pour into awesome reusable cup with straw.
3. Enjoy delicious summertime bliss! :)

I'm sure this could be done with many other frozen fruits (mango, pineapple, raspberries, blackberries, etc.), but I don't currently have the time to experiment right now. Let me know if you try another combo that works!

Nutrition Info:

Calories: 188

Fat: 1 g

Carbs: 34 g

Protein: 12 g

Grilled Peaches with Greek Yogurt

I decided that I would celebrate my last day of summer vacation by making this simple and delicious (not to mention healthy) dessert for myself that just screams summertime.

Cast of Characters:

• 1 ripe (almost overripe) peach
• 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1 Tbsp granola
• 1 Tbsp honey (I prefer organic honey over the typical clover honey. It has more flavor)

Directions:

1. Cut peach in half and remove the pit.
2. Spray grill or peaches lightly with cooking spray. Place peaches with the skin side up on the grill. (I used my George Foreman grill for this part).
3. Remove peaches after about a minute or so.
4. Garnish the peach with yogurt, granola, and honey.
5. Enjoy!

Nutrition Info:

Calories: 160

Fat: 1 g

Carbs: 34 g

Protein: 7 g

Easy Peach Crumble

As many of my friends know, my favorite fruit is peaches (what Georgia native doesn't love peaches?), so today while walking through the grocery store, I decided to grab a few and see what I could do with them. Here's what I came up with.

Cast of Characters:

• 4 Large Peaches
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup of butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Peel and slice peaches and plop them into a 9x9 baking dish. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon over the peaches evenly.
3. In a medium (or large) mixing bowl, mix together the cake mix and melted butter until the cake mix is fully covered. It should be a crumbly texture.
4. Spoon your cake mix and butter combo over the peaches and spread evenly over the top.
5. Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.
6. Eat and enjoy!

I must say, I was pleasantly surprised by how this turned out. I think next time I'm going to try using apples and a spice cake mix. Anyone have any other good combination ideas?

Nutrition Info:

Servings: 9

Calories: 377

Fat: 16 g

Carbs: 57 g

Protein: 3 g