Recipe: Tangy Raspberry Pineapple Smoothie

Two words that describe what this smoothie tastes like: Tangy SweeTARTS. I've been making this smoothie almost everyday because it tastes just like candy! However, instead of loading up on refined sugars, you are getting 4 full servings of fruit in this one smoothie.

If it is too sour on its own, add in a natural sweetner. Honey or agave are the best choices.

Tangy Raspberry Pineapple Smoothie
- 1 cup of frozen raspberries
- 1 banana
- 1/2 cup of fresh pineapple
- 1/4 cup of orange juice
- 1/2 lemon, juice
- 1/2 cup of plain yogurt
- 1 tsp of chia seeds
- 1 Tbsp of flax oil
- 1/2 cup of museli
- choice of sweetener (optional)

Method
1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour shake into a cup and enjoy.  

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Recipe: Zingy Pineapple and Papaya Chia Shake

I know I keep posting shake recipes but I can't get enough of them! It is such a convenient way to get your fruits and nutrients that I've made it part of my daily routine. Having a shake/smoothie each morning knocks out at least 2 servings of your daily fruit intake, plus a bunch of other good stuff like essential fatty acids, anti-oxidants and protein.

Chia seeds aren't just good as pets (remember ch-ch-ch-chia?), they are an extremely great source of fiber, protein, and omega-3 essential fatty acids. When immersed in liquid, chia seeds release a gel like cover, making it slightly chewy and crunchy at the same time.

Chia is a member of the mint family and pairs great with fresh mint leaves. This recipe calls for 6-10 mint leaves because it all depends on the size of the mint leaves you have on hand. In the summertime, my mint comes fresh from a garden and are slightly smaller than the ones I find at the store. Start with 6 mint leaves and add more if you want.

This refreshing shake is perfect for a weekend brunch.

This recipe yields 1 cup.

Zingy Pineapplea and Papaya Chia Shake
- 1 cup of pineapple
- 1 cup of papaya
- 1 tsp of chia seeds
- 1 Tbsp of flax oil
- 1 1/2 Tbsp of pumpkin seeds
- 6-10 fresh mint leaves
- juice of 1/2 a lemon + rind of 1/8 of a lemon
- honey to sweeten (up to 1 Tbsp)

Method
1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour shake into a cup and enjoy.

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Recipe: Easy Lemon Quinoa Salad

When you're in a pinch and need a quick salad or side dish, this is the perfect one. Fresh. Light. Simple. And the best part, takes no time make.

This recipe yields 4 small portions.

Lemon Quinoa Salad
- 1 cup of cooked quinoa
- 2 lebanese cucumbers, chopped
- 1 roma tomato, chopped
- 1 lemon, juice
- 1 scallion, finely chopped
- 1 orange pepper, chopped
- black pepper
- white pepper
- salt
- cayenne pepper
- extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. Cook the quinoa as per package instructions.

2. In a bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, vegetables, scallions and lemon juice. Drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil. Add black pepper, white pepper, salt and cayenne pepper to taste. Mix well. Refrigerate and serve cold.

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Lemon Strawberry Yogurt Loaf

Lemons and Stawberries. Strawberries and Lemons. Doesn't that just scream summer to you?

A few good friends of ours all gave birth around the same time so we are surrounded by babies this summer. Look how precious she looks. Only 8 days old!

To celebrate, I decided to bake this delicious dense yogurt loaf filled with strawberries and lemons. Hope you're all having a wonderful summer so far!

Lemon Strawberry Yogurt Loaf
- 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp of baking powder
- 1/2 tsp of salt
- 3/4 cup of plain low fat Greek style yogurt
- 3/4 cup of sugar
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp of almond extract
- 3 large egg whites
- 2 tsp of lemon zest
- 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
- 2 cups of fresh strawberries, small slices

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 350F/175C.

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together the yogurt and sugar. Slowly add the yogurt and sugar, egg whites, lemon juice, lemon zest, honey, and almond extract to the dry ingredients and whisk slowly. When the mixture is almost smooth, slowly add in the vegetable oil and continue to whisk slowly until perfectly smooth. Fold in the strawberries until evenly distributed.

3. Lightly grease a loaf pan (9x5x3 inches), and line it with parchment paper. Lightly grease and flour the pan lined with parchment paper. Pour the batter into the pan.

4. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Remove the loaf from the pan, let it cool on a cooling rack, and serve.

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Lemon Curd Bars

The awesome thing about these lemon curd bars are that they are a hit no matter when and what you make them for. I've made these a bunch of times and people love them every time! The fresh lemon flavor combined with the short bread crust is irresistible. Try it for yourself. You won't regret it....well, you may regret going for that second or third helping, but that's not a bad thing in my books ;)

Lemon Curd Bars
(Adapted from Taste and Tell)

Shortbread Crust
- 2 cups of sifted all-purpose flour
- 2 sticks of butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- vegetable oil for greasing

Lemon Curd- 1 cup of fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest, grated
- 4 large eggs, plus 2 egg yolks (at room temperature)
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup of sifted all-purpose flour

Method
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F/175C. Line a 9x13 baking dish with tin foil. Grease the tin foil with vegetable oil.

2. In a bowl, combine the shortbread crust ingredients and mix well until a dough forms. Press the dough evenly and tightly into the baking dish, making sure there are no cracks. Bake for 25 minutes or until slightly golden.

3. While the crust is baking, make the lemon curd. Whisk together the eggs, 2 cups of sugar, and 1/3 cup of flour, adding the sugar and flour a little bit at a time. Once the lemon curd is smooth, whisk in the lemon zest and lemon juice.

4. When the crust is finished baking, remove from oven and pour the lemon curd mixture over top of the crust. Reduce the heat to 300F/150C, and bake the lemon curd for 30-35 minutes, or until it sets.

5. Remove from oven and let it cool in the pan. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight is best. Remove from pan, peel off the tin foil, and slice into even bars. Keep the bars refrigerated until ready to serve. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

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Lemon Cookies The Lazy Way

Before I delve into my lemon cookies, I'd first like to introduce you to my new kitchen (at least for the next few weeks). As you can see, it is a very tiny space, and more than one person hanging out here is a crowd.

I've been craving cookies, so when I saw a recipe for lemon cookies using cake mix, I got excited. Partly because of the size of my kitchen, but mainly because it is hard to justify buying too many groceries that require storage when I'm only here for two more weeks.

These cookies are refreshing because of the citrus, and you don't have to worry about measuring out the right amount of ingredients because most of it is done for you. I do have to warn you though, there will be a slight artificial lemon taste from the cake mix, but I think it adds character to the cookies ;-)

This recipe makes about 3 dozen small cookies.

Lemon Cookies the Lazy Way
(Adapted from My Baking Addiction)

- 1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix

- 2 eggs

- 1/3 cup vegetable oil

- juice of 1/2 lemon

- zest of 1/2 lemon

- 1 teaspoon almond extract

- confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, lemon juice, almond extract and lemon zest until well blended.

3.Drop teaspoonfuls of dough onto a greased baking sheet, and dust confectioners's sugar on top of each cookie.

4. Bake for 6 to 9 minutes in the preheated oven. The bottoms will be light brown, and the insides chewy.

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