Lemon-Berry Muffins

Recently, I have been looking for a better-for-you muffin recipe that I could make and have as a snack when I wanted something sweet. A lot of the gluten-free, vegan baked goods are loaded with sugar and have really little fiber. I ended up combining a few of the recipes in my cookbooks with others I found online for these sweet little treats! I love making them in mini-muffin pans; however, for the recipe below, I used a standard 12-count muffin tray. Enjoy!

Lemon-Berry Muffins 
*Vegan + Gluten-Free 

Ingredients
1 large banana
1/2 cup almond milk
2 tablespoons almond butter
1.5 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup gluten-free rolled oats (uncooked)
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup 100% pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt
1/2 cup blueberries

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12-count muffin tray or line with muffin cups.
2. Add all ingredients, except blueberries to a blender and blend until smooth. Mixture will be thick; however, if there are issues blending, add in almond milk, 1 tablespoon at a time.
3. Fold in blueberries. Spoon mixture into prepared tray and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Recipe Notes
-Makes 12 standard-sized muffins, serving 6.
-Can make in a mini-muffin tray; however, decrease cooking time to about half.
-Can substitute cashew milk or pea milk for almond. Pea milk will add in protein.
-Can substitute sunflower seed butter or peanut butter for the almond.
-If you are not gluten-free, can use regular rolled oats
-Store at room temperature for 2-3 days in an air-tight container or in the fridge up to 1 week.

Pizza Quinoa Bites

Welcome back to PorrazzaNutrition! Today, I want to share with you a recipe I just revamped from my old cooking files. I have been trying to weed through my collection of recipes to figure out the ones I actually use and those I was just hoarding :) I am challenging myself to 1 day per week where I try new recipes and incorporate the tasty ones into my weekly meals or party rotation (since I usually bring healthy dishes wherever I go). My challenge to you this month is to get in the kitchen and try a new recipe or revamp (in a healthy way) an old one from your collection!

Pizza Quinoa Bites

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1/2 cup low salt tomato sauce **
1.5 cups water
1 small onion, diced
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 flax eggs **
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/2 cup grape tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 cup nutritional yeast **
Dash of salt and pepper

Directions
1. In a large pot, bring to a boil quinoa, tomato sauce, and water. Lower and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a small saucepan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil for 3-5 minutes over medium-low heat.
4. In a large bowl, mix together onion/garlic, quinoa, flax eggs, basil, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings to your taste.
5. Form mixture into bite-sized patties and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Flip and bake for an additional 5 minutes (or broil for 1-2 minutes for crispier patties). Serve with fresh tomato sauce.

**Recipe Notes
-No-salt-added crushed tomatoes can be used in place of tomato sauce.
-To make a single flax egg, which is a replacement for 1 whole egg, simply mix 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds with 3 tablespoons of water. Double to make the two needed for this recipe.
-Nutritional yeast is a substitute for dairy-cheeses and can be found online or at most health-food stores.