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I have been a blogging slacker all summer long!  I just didn't feel like I had anything interesting to say.  To be honest I'm pretty sure I still don't have anything of interest to say, but I'm blogging anyhow! lol!  I did have a great summer!  I got to see the Smashing Pumpkins in Charlotte, I took a super fun trip to Baltimore and I had a nice Labor Day weekend in a rustic cabin at a local state park.  I'm planning to do a recap of my summer adventures sometime this week!  Right now I'll delve straight into my favorite subject, food!

First up is a lemony salmon feast!  I've been in a huge citrus mood recently for some reason.  This dinner is ridiculously easy!  The hardest part is chopping the sweet potatoes.  After you wash and chop your sweet potatoes you just drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper, cayenne, and lemon juice and bake at 400 about 30 minutes.  Easy and delicious!  For the green beans you can string and boil fresh beans, or you can cheat and use the steam in the bag kind (not that I'd ever do that ;p), once they are cooked put in a pan and sautee with salt, pepper, and lemon juice.  Top with feta cheese and put a lid on til the cheese melts a bit.  Then serve.  That recipe is courtesy of my good friend Jessi and it is DELICIOUS!!!  Try it right away!  Now for the salmon, cover a cookie sheet with foil, spread salmon on top, drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and Bragg's Organic Sprinkle seasoning.  Then drizzle on lemon juice and bake at 375 for about 10 minutes, or until it flakes easily and is opaque. Simple and so tasty!  The whole family loved it. 

Tonight's dinner was an easy favorite.

CHICKEN, ZUCCHINI CASSEROLE

 1 cup of shredded chicken (I roast a chicken once a week and then use the leftovers)
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1 large chopped zucchini
1.5 cups cooked brown rice (I use Lundberg Brown Basmati cooked in broth)
3/4 can of Health Valley Cream of Mushroom soup (if you can't have gluten)
1 oz. of reduced fat Philadelphia cream cheese

Mix all ingredients well, place in an 8x8 pan, top with your favorite shredded cheese.  I used colby jack for this. No measurements, just however much you want. You cannot have too much cheese in my opinion! Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 
**note, Health Valley soup makes this really runny.  I'd recommend another brand or maybe adding cornstarch or something to thicken.**

This casserole is very versatile!  You can use whatever meat, grain, cheese, or veggie you want! 

Last but not least, I've been on a baking kick lately.  I've been making muffins, cookies, and cakes at least three times a week.  The end of summer makes me snacky! Today I wanted something that would use up a variety of leftover ingredients and some fresh raspberries I had in the fridge.  So I thought up these:

RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

  
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup sugar in the raw
1/4 cup light brown sugar
4 TB coconut oil
2 eggs
Whisk these ingredients together until well mixed.  In a separate bowl combine:
1 cup Gluten Free Bisquick
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup Gluten Free Oats
1 tsp ginger
Add the dry ingredients to the wet.  Mix well.  Add:
1.5 cup fresh (or frozen) raspberries
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. 

Pour into lined muffin tin.  Sprinkle tops with a bit more sugar in the raw. Bake at 400 for about 20 minutes.  These are very moist and the raspberries make them a bit tart.