‘Tis the season for Christmas goodies!!! We all have parties to attend whether it is at work or with friends. We also have Christmas parties for our kids either at school or in our communities. When my kids were younger we used to have a birthday party for Jesus to really explain the true meaning of Christmas to our kids. That’s right a full fledged birthday party with games and a cake. No matter what the party the majority of them require you to bring food. Let’s face it the majority of food that comes to these lovely get togethers is not usually the most nutritious so why don’t you be the one person that goes out on a limb and brings the delicious healthy food. Your dish might be the only healthy thing there but at least there will be one. I am a Pinterest junkie and get a lot of recipe ideas from there so I wanted to highlight a few of my favorites to help you out this Christmas season.
I hope you try some and if you do let me know on my – Makes a generous 2 cups. Serve this Edamame-Avocado Guacamole with I-Cant-Believe-They’re-Not-Fried Tortilla Chips
INGREDIENTS
1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed and coarsely mashed with a fork
2 avocadoes, halved, pitted, fleshed scooped out and mashed with a fork
3 scallions, trimmed and sliced thin
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
Mix all ingredients, including salt and pepper to taste, in a medium bowl. Adjust seasonings and serve with chips.
TREATS
My favorite Christmas treat is fudge. I LOVE IT WAY MORE THAN I SHOULD!!!! This is another recipe that I will be making this weekend!!! Simple, Healthy Fudge!
INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. coconut oil
1/2 c. cocoa powder (preferably organic & raw)
1/4-1/2 c. raw, local honey (start with 1/4, taste and add more if desired)
1/2 t. vanilla extract
pinch of unrefined sea salt
DIRECTIONS
Place all ingredients in the blender and blend until combined. If you do not have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix or Blend-tec, you may want to gently melt half the coconut oil before blending. (You don’t want it hot, so you may want to melt it and then let it cool.)
If you over mix, the fudge may become stretchy. It still tastes great, though!
Pour the blended mixture into a muffin pan lined with paper muffin liners (fill each cup about halfway), or into a loaf pan lined with parchment. Chill until firm (at least an hour, but more is better.)
Note that the fudge becomes soft at room temperature, so it is best to keep it refrigerated and remove just before serving. I like to cut the muffin-sized fudge pieces into quarters because they are so rich. Mini-muffin sized would be great, too!
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