If you’re trying to eat healthy and lean but don’t know how to incorporate protein into your diet without eating meat, then you’ll definitely want to check out Ricki’s recipe for Lentil Pistachio Patties. Her patties are packed with more nutrients than you’d ever be able to fit into a traditional beef patty. So what’s Ricki’s secret to preparing a delicious, protein-rich meal? She loads the patties with naturally flavorful ingredients like pistachios and avocados. Let’s not forget to mention the soy sauce!

Like Ricki, I tend to forget about the bean family. I usually view them as something to eat on the side, in addition to a more recognized protein like meat or beef. It’s refreshing to come across a creative recipe like this, though! I’ll definitely have to keep her recipe in mind for the next time I want to prepare a filling but nutritious meal.

Ricki shares her passion for cooking and healthy living on her blog Diet, Desserts, and Dogs, be sure to check out all the other tasty ways she puts healthy recipes together.

When Leemei posted her recipe for Marbled Chocolate Muffins she not only gave us all another great muffin recipe, she gave us 100 great muffin recipes! She based her recipe from the book “1 Mix, 100 Muffins” by Susanna Tee. If you haven’t already gotten your mitts on this one I would highly recommend it! Leemei shares with us the “top tips for the perfect muffin” from the book on her blog, My Cooking Hut.
Leemei says, “The beauty of this book is that every single recipe is based on the Basic Muffin Mix. As soon as this is mastered, you can put just about anything in the muffin!” The possibilities are endless!

Salsa and chips go hand in hand the way corn on the cob and Summer cookouts do, so I know Lynne’s Grilled Corn Salsa would be a satisfying summertime snack. Enjoy it with your favorite corn chips or grilled meal; I bet this would even taste delicious on top of a warm quesadilla. Jalapenos give the salsa a spicy kick while fresh garlic and lemon juice make it refreshing and savory; take a peak at all the delicious ingredients Lynne used to make the salsa!

Though putting the salsa together only requires chopping up a few ingredients, those simple ingredients make the salsa colorful and tasty. Everything it contains is fresh and healthy, so unlike other toppings that tend to be rich, you can use as much of the salsa as you like and still feel good about what you’re eating.

In her blog Cafe LynnLu, Lynne features beautiful photos of the corn she grilled and used to prepare the salsa. Check it out and don’t forget to say hi :)!

If you’re having a difficult time figuring out how to make your next batch of corn muffins, you might want to look at Amanda’s blog, Asparagus Thin, for a few pointers. Before she begins describing her muffins, Amanda hypothetically asks her readers to think of the kind of texture that makes up the perfect corn muffin. Personally, I have to agree with Amanda; I also prefer corn muffins that aren’t overly sweet, especially if I’m going to eat them with a meal…but I also think that sweet corn muffins can be treated as a dessert, and who can resist a warm corn muffin with honey drizzled on top? Oh! Decisions, decisions!

Now let’s say we’re looking for a lean muffin. Possibly one that’s gluten free, low in sugar, and maybe even dairy free…is it possible to find a corn muffin that has each and every one of those qualities? Thanks to Amanda, it is. Her Humble Muffin recipe is healthy and definitely diet-friendly, and I’m not just referring to fad diets. What makes Amanda’s muffin recipe worth holding on to is that so many folks can enjoy them. So if you’re looking for a starch to serve at your next dinner party with a bowl of soup or chili, as Amanda suggests, definitely consider making these!

Spicy Salmon Fillets with Fresh Herb Salsa… sounds tedious and time consuming right? Wrong. Jeanne claims that this dish can be on the table in thirty minutes flat. Sounds like Cook Sister! is giving Rachael Ray a run for her money! The simple ingredients give the dish a warm and spicy flavor, and Jeanne’s addition of zucchini and leeks sound like the perfect accompaniment.

So, if you don’t have time to prepare an intricate meal, but don’t want to compromise flavor and health look no further! These Spicy Salmon Fillets can be on your table in no time!

Though a warm, buttery dinner roll is hard to compete with, Karen’s adapted recipe for Mochi Bread produces snack size rolls that are so good on their own, dipping them in gravy would be a shame. Made with three different kinds of flours, including mochiko and soy, Karen’s rolls are more exciting than the average all-purpose flour based ones. In her blog, My Baking and Cooking Passion, she talks about their texture; “their crust is crispy even after awhile and the interior is chewy” is what she says.

Now, you may have heard of and maybe even eaten mochi before, but this is a bit different from the rice cake. Unlike the cake, which can be filled with a variety of sweet or savory ingredients, Karen’s mochi bread consists of the same ingredients throughout. After the first bite, you’ll notice something fun about the rolls, though. They’re slightly sweet from the sugar and they have little air pockets, making them a light but satisfying afternoon snack.

I was recently invited to a party and asked to bring a dessert (a request I gladly accepted). I found out later that I was not the only person asked to bring a dessert. As soon as I discovered this the competitive beast within me growled and I created within my own mind a competition of sorts. I would bring a dessert to this party and it would be the best! I WILL win! But, which dessert to bring?? I probably have a hundred recipes that I felt confident would win, but of course I didn’t want it to seem like I was trying to hard. I needed something simple yet brilliant!

Hilda’s version of Dorie Greenspan’s Perfect Party Cake really is the perfect party cake. It boasts a beautiful presentation and fabulous flavor. Hilda comments on her blog, Saffron and Blueberry, how versatile this cake is as well. Dorie’s original recipe called for a lemon-raspberry flavor, but Hlida made it her own by creating a blueberry variation. With so many flavorful possibilities and such a delightfully delicious outcome this recipe makes for the perfect go-to recipe for any occasion!

Imagine if you could have s’mores without the fire, or even without the mosquitoes that accompany camping adventures. Well, with this recipe, you can have your cake (or cupcake) and eat it too! John’s Marshmallow Espresso Cupcakes are gooey, rich, and fun to eat. You don’t have to wait for the sun to set to enjoy these cupcakes that are crammed with a variety of well-loved ingredients. In fact, you don’t even have to have the time that usually goes in to making cupcakes from scratch, so long as you have your favorite chocolatey cake mix handy.

Speaking of chocolate, there are even chocolate chips in John’s Marshmallow Espresso cupcake recipe…and let’s not forget about the other ingredients in the title. If you take a look at John’s blog Cooking, Dunkin Style you’ll immediately love the toasty look of the marshmallows; don’t they have that ooey-gooey freshly roasted look that makes the cupcakes impossible to resist? :)

Unlike gifts that come in a box, covered up in wrapping paper, edible gifts don’t require any bows or ribbons to make them appealing. This especially applies to those baked with a lot of love, like Stephanie’s Cherry Macaroon Tart. Stephanie makes this a real tart by adding a half pound of cherries to the filling, but the sweetness of the sugar balances out all the flavors so that the coconut can easily come through. And there’s nearly 3 cups of coconut in her dessert! You know this has to give the tart’s crust a kind of sweet creaminess that butter and sugar alone can’t.

On her blog, Steph Chows, Stephanie mentions that she baked the tart in a pan with a removable bottom…now why didn’t I think of that earlier! Think of all those desserts I could’ve kept in one piece! I do know one thing… I doubt Stephanie’s tart stayed in one piece after placing it on the dessert table at the baby shower; I know I would’ve dived right in if I was there! Let’s just say I definitely wouldn’t have waited for all the gift opening to happen first ;)!

Step-by-step instructions are usually common in cookbooks, but I am usually drawn to the recipes that feature step-by-step instructions with pictures. So visual learners like myself will find Megan’s recipes more than helpful. In her blog My Baking Adventures, Megan shares photos of her daughter, Sabrina, stuffing colorful bell peppers that are too cute to resist. The fun thing about these peppers is that they’re mini, which makes them even more appealing to kiddos who’d never guess they were getting a healthy dose of vitamin C in each tasty bite.

Megan and her family enjoy finishing off the stuffed peppers with chili sauce…or two squirts of ketchup, for more refined palates ;). Simple but still nutritious, Megan’s recipe is ideal for families with children who are curious about the arts…culinary art!