Healthy Recipes

Dried Cranberry & Nut Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup chilled butter or margarine
½ cup FAVE's Dried Cranberries, Blueberries, or chopped Dried Cherries,Mangoes or Pineapple
½ cup FAVE's baked peanuts, cashews, almonds or any nuts
1 extra large egg
½ cup milk

Preheat oven to 220°C.
Mix the flour, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, baking powder and salt.
Cut in the butter until it resembles small peas. Stir in Peanuts and cranberries. Whisk together egg and milk; reserve 1 tablespoon of the mixture.
Add remaining mixture to flour mixture, stir quickly just until the dough holds together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface; knead dough gently 10 to 12 times.
Pat into an 8-inch circle about ½-inch thick; place on a greased baking sheet. Score into 8 wedges. Brush top with reserved milk-egg mixture; sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
Bake for about 18 - 22 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into wedges; serve warm. Makes 8 scones.

Nut & Fruit Cookies

2 cups Walnuts (or any nuts of choice) soaked overnight 
1 cup Sweet and sour dried or fresh apricots (or dried fruits of choice)
1 cup soaked Black Raisins (small cup) 
2  bananas 

Blend till the crumby consistensy, use a spoon to spoon the batter out on a
dehydrator plastic tray. 
Dehydrate for 23 hours or until dry (do not overdry) at the temperature of 50 deg C. 
Turn them over in 4 hours or when you see that one side is dry enough. 
Experiment with your favorite nuts,seeds and fruits. 
Use a combination of a fresh fruit and some dried soaked fruits with nuts.

Fruit Leather

2 large pears
3 small fuji apples
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Clean, core and dice pears and apples.
Place in a blender and add a small amount of purified water and cinnamon, process for approx. 30 seconds.
Pour mixture on teflex sheets and place trays in dehydrator.
Dehydrate for 6-8 hours, remove teflex sheets and flip fruit leather over. Continue dehydrating until desired moisture is obtained.
You can make a fruit leather using any fruit and any combination and amounts

Skillet Chicken with Lemon & Dried Fruits

2 teaspoon olive oil
1kg bone-in chicken pieces, skinned & trimmed of fat
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups mixed dried fruits (pears, pitted prunes, apricots, apples, peaches)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (1/2 lemon)
3/4 teaspoons dried thyme
2 lemons, thinly sliced & seeded

In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken and cook for about 6 minutes per side, or until the chicken is browned. Remove the chicken, season lightly with salt and pepper and set aside.

Add 1/3 cup water to the skillet, and stir to loosen and dissolve any brown bits stuck to the pan. Stir in the dried fruit, lemon juice and thyme. Place the chicken over the fruit in the pan and baste with the sauce. Arrange the lemon slices over the chicken.

Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink inside and the fruit is tender.

Remove the lemon slices and place around the edge of a serving platter. With slotted spoon, transfer the chicken and fruit to the platter.

Add 1/3 cup water to the skillet and boil for 1 minute. Taste and adjust seasonings. Pour over the chicken and serve immediately. Serves 6.

Banana Orange Oat Muffins With Walnuts & Raisins

Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium bananas)
1/2 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 egg
1/4 cup light olive oil
1 1/2 cups rolled
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup raisins, regular or golden
1/4 cup chopped toasted walnut

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Spray 12-cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. In large bowl, whisk together mashed bananas, orange juice concentrate, egg and oil.
Stir in rolled oats, let sit about 15 minutes to soften.

In separate bowl, combine flour with baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to cereal mixture and stir just until combined. Gently fold in raisins and pecans. Spoon batter evenly into muffin tins. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until done. Cool 5 minutes in tin.