Happy Friday!!  By the time it rolls around to Foodie Friday, I usually just post a recipe and move on, desperately awaiting the weekend.  But this week, I’ve enjoyed so much great food with my family that I just have to share some with you!  If you’ve already seen most of this via Instagram, feel free to move on to the recipe at the bottom of the post!

On Sunday night, Kevin and I kicked off the holiday week right by grilling a beautiful tuna steak, two giant scallops, some asparagus, and pineapple.  We finished that off with some farro and some more roasted veggies, and it was an absolutely delicious meal!

I somehow found room to continue the deliciousness with a plate of “apple nachos” for dessert.  This is an amazingly delicious and easy dessert!

Monday night was my sister’s first night in Dallas, and I made a Citrus-Beet Salad, Lemon-Garlic Shrimp and Vegetables, quinoa, and Sesame Green Beans for my family.  Healthy, simple, and tasty!

Tuesday night, on Christmas Eve, we enjoyed a beef tenderloin, Christmas Cranberry-Orange Brussels Sprouts, and mashed cauliflower and rutabaga topped with garlicky red kale.  I somehow got the random idea that I wanted to make gingerbread cookies out of the leftover quinoa we had from the night before, and my sister is the biggest trooper and followed my (made-up) recipe to a T!  They’re were fine, but not great (my fault, not hers), so no recipe here.

Wednesday was Christmas, and started with many hours of fun family time and presents.  Check out one of the gifts I received – a Lyons’ Share apron, and several place settings to take prettier pictures for the blog!  I also got some great food photography books from my sister- and brother-in-law, and a mini photo studio from Kevin, so you’ll be seeing improved pictures eventually!  Anyway, by the time we rolled around to Christmas dinner, I somehow forgot to take a picture of my plate, but it was delicious as well!  We had turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and a twist on my Healthier Green Bean Casserole.  

Yesterday was my mom’s birthday (and my sister-in-law’s as well, although she is in California!), so Kevin and I hosted my family for brunch.  We enjoyed a veggie-filled egg white scramble, cheesy scrambled eggs, bacon, baked tomatoes with fresh oregano and parmesan, fruit, cinnamon rolls from our neighbor in Colorado, mimosas, fresh green juice (made with my new juicer – another Christmas present!), and some Cranberry Vanilla Muffins – recipe below! 

I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before, but I despise wasting food.  I just can’t make myself do it!  So when I was left with most of a bag of cranberries after making my Christmas Cranberry-Orange Brussels Sprouts last week, I knew I’d have to create another recipe that used them.  Well, my Cranberry Vanilla Muffins were born, and I liked them!  They’re not overly sweet, and are much more of a breakfast muffin than a dessert muffin.  They have a bit of a protein punch, and have no added sugar, so they’re a very healthy way to enjoy a muffin without a heavy feeling or a sugar rush.  I hope you enjoy these at your next brunch!

Cranberry Vanilla Muffins

Makes 10 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 scoop protein powder (I used 365 brand vanilla whey protein powder, which was 21.5g)
• 1/2 cup your choice flour (I used 2 Tbsp. coconut flour and 6 Tbsp. brown rice flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 banana
• 1/4 cup liquid egg substitute (or 1 egg)
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1.5 tsp coconut oil, melted
• 20 drops stevia (I used vanilla flavored)
• 6 Tbsp unsweetened applesauce
• 1 single-serve container (5.3 ounces) of Greek yogurt (I used a vanilla-flavored container of the new Chobani Simply 100 line, which is sweetened with monk fruit and stevia)
• 3/4 cup raw cranberries

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix all dry ingredients (protein powder through salt).
3. Mash banana with a fork in a separate bowl, and combine with all wet ingredients (egg through yogurt).
4. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients to form a batter.
5. Chop your cranberries, or use a food processor to leave you with small pieces.
6. Fold cranberries into batter, and spoon batter into 10 muffin cups, sprayed with cooking spray or oil.
7. Bake muffins for 13-15 minutes at 350, or until toothpick comes out clean.
8. Enjoy!  My mom used pumpkin butter on her muffin, and I enjoyed mine plain – both ways are good!

If made according to these instructions, each muffin will have 67 calories, 1g fat, 10g carbs, and 4g protein.  

While these meals may look slightly larger and a bit more indulgent than usual, I have to admit that I still feel great – I’ve been exercising every day (and enjoying doing so stress-free and less time-constrained than usual!), and as I’ve mentioned many times, I definitely believe in enjoying the treats that come around once a year without “throwing in the towel” on the entire season.  Many of my other meals have been my go-to favorites, and I’ll always find a way to sneak veggies into any day!

So tell me in the comments … Did you do or eat anything fun this week?  What is your favorite kind of muffin?  Do you hate wasting food like I do?