Spice Is Nice

Eating healthier can be hard over the long haul if you don't build-in healthier options that taste like the decadant treats of yesteryear.  The good news, for folks with a sweet tooth anyway, is that spices like cinnamon and cardamom and others have some decent antioxidant potential.

Which means you can have your cake and eat it, too, if you make it with fresh, wholesome, relatively healthy ingredients.

Yay!

For example, lowfat or nonfat cottage cheese is a protein and nutrient powerhouse, but it can be a bit on the bland side without some chopped, tasty veggies or something else mixed in for taste.  If I eat my cottage cheese plain, I tend to over-salt it, and that's not a good thing either over the long haul.  So I concocted an easy yet really tasty quick breakfast.  Here's the recipe (all measurements are approximate, as I tend to just eyeball this): 


In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup nonfat cottage cheese, 1/4 cup reduced fat vanilla yogurt, 1 Tbsp. chopped, toasted pecans, 1 tsp. cinnamon, sometimes a splash of vanilla depending on what brand yogurt I'm using, and a couple of packets of Splenda if I'm in a sugary mood, otherwise  I leave this plain.  Stir everything together and it tastes a lot like a cinnamon roll if you don't squint too much. 

It's a quick and easy breakfast, and you can make it ahead -- just don't add the toasted pecans until you are ready to eat or they will lose their crunch.  I make a bigger batch of this and keep it in the fridge for breakfast and snacks, and keep the pecans handy in an airtight container on the counter.  Yummy!

I've been a little more sensitive to the notion of eating food that is healthy for me of late.  With everything that we've gone through as a family the last few years, taking good care of ourselves has become a lot more of a priority.  So I've been trying to compile a number of recipes that help to do that -- especially ones with cinnamon, which helps with blood sugar control and a whole host of other health issues.  Thought I'd share some of my recipe faves with you.

-- Cinnamon Rice Pudding with Dried Cherry Sauce
-- Cinnamon-Apple Cake
-- Spiced Coffee with Cinnamon Whipped Cream
-- Freezer Cinnamon-Fruit Rolls
-- New Mexican Hot Chocolate
-- Pork Loin Chops with Cinnamon Apples
-- Morroccan-Spiced Oranges
-- Lamb Tagine with Cinnamon, Saffron and Dried Fruit
-- Apple-Pecan-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
-- The Best Darned Grilled Chicken Ever (Paul Prudhomme recipe, that is definitely worth trying!)
-- Pumpkin Pudding with Candied Pecans
-- Caramelized Rice Pudding With Pears and Raisins
-- Make-Ahead Oooey, Gooey Sticky Buns
-- Spiced Cider (substitute orange juice for the brandy if you like)
-- Mulled Cranberry-Apple Cider
-- Orange-Spiced Cider
-- Apricot-Apple Cider Sipper (I'd reduce the sugar in this one a lot, though.)
-- Pineapple Wassail
-- Pear and Ginger Crisp
-- Caribbean Pork and Plaintain Hash
-- Maple-Cinnamon Applesauce
-- Jacqui's Jerk Chicken
-- Moroccan Skirt Steak with Roasted Pepper Couscous
-- Curried Red Lentil Soup
-- Greek Walnut Spice Cake
-- Orzo with Lamb, Olives and Feta
-- Southwestern-Rubbed Turkey
-- Indian-Spiced Grilled Chicken
-- Quick Chicken Tikka Masala

(Photo of cinnamon sticks via kobiz7.)