Anyways, I bought all of the fruit and veggies I need for the week, but I had 2 favorite purchases!

First, was the bag of older bananas that I got for .98 cents!!

That’s right, 10 bananas for .98 cents!  And, they aren’t even that ripe!  I bought some good bananas for the week, but I purchased these babies so that I can cut them all up and freeze them.  I love adding frozen bananas to my smoothies, instead of normal bananas because they give it a little bit more thickness.  These 10 bananas will keep me going for a while – I would have bought more if I had a bigger freezer – what a great deal!   Look for this type of stuff at your local grocery store because normally the fruit that they put in the “damaged” bin is not really that damaged.  I have bought apples and pears before as well – just cut off the bruised parts and save yourself loads of money.

My 2nd favorite purchase was a spaghetti squash.  I have only made spaghetti squash once before, and it turned out great, so I decided to try again.

Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

• 1 spaghetti squash
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp dried basil (or fresh, if you have it)
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

I cut my squash in half and scooped out the seeds inside, then placed it face down on a cookie sheet.

I saved a few seeds to toast and use on my salad!

Sprinkled with salt and paprika before toasting.

I baked it in a 400°F oven for 35 minutes and it came out perfect!

Once cooked enough that you can easily stick a fork into the squash, it is ready to be turned into spaghetti!

Take one half of the squash and scrape out the insides with a fork.  It will easily come out and look like spaghetti.  Repeat with the other side.

I mixed my spaghetti squash up with a little butter, salt, pepper, basil and Parmesan cheese.

I also cut up some grape tomatoes and tossed them in my spaghetti.

Along with my spaghetti squash I had a great salad!

Remember when I made stuffed peppers for some friends and served it along with whole grain bread?  Well, the next day I put the leftover bread right into the freezer to save for homemade croutons!

Tonight, I thawed the bread, cut it up into squares and tossed them with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper.  If you remember, the bread was already brushed with italian seasoning before freezing.

I then toasted the chunks of bread in my toaster oven until they formed crispy croutons!

I used a bed of romaine lettuce and garnished it with freshly dried apple slices (by me!), unsweetened dried cranberries, toasted seeds from my squash and homemade croutons.  I drizzled olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dressing.

And all together!

All served with some Malbec, which was delicious!

It was a light meal, which normally would be great, but tonight I am still hungry!  Off to find some snacks.

They were super easy to make.  I substituted some of my own ingredients in the bars, since I had them on hand.  You could basically use any type of dried fruit and/or nuts you have on hand!

Homemade Granola Bars

Ingredients:

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350°.

2.  Mix dry ingredients.

3.  Mix wet ingredients.

4. Pour wet into dry.  Stir to combine.

5.  Pour into a 9 x 9 baking dish either coated in cooking spray or lined with parchment.

6.  Bake for 40 minutes.

7.  Cut into 9 squares.  Wrap individually and freeze for an on-the-go treat!

These smelled delicious while they were cooking!  Upon taking them out, I dug right in to try a piece and I was a little disappointed.  I would like them to be a tad sweeter.  Next time I will add some agave or honey or brown sugar!  My husband doesn’t agree though, he loves them!

Cranberry-Pear Cake Bars

(I switched up a few ingredients to the items I already had in my cabinets)

makes 16 bars

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated orange zest
• 2 firm pears, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 cups fresh cranberries (if frozen, thaw before using)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Below are a few of my organic ingredients that I used in this recipe…I forgot to snap photos of the others…

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350°

- Line a 9″ x 13″ pan with parchment paper, which a few inches over the sides (for easy removal).  Lightly spray with olive oil cooking spray.

- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla and zest. Add flour mixture and stir just until combined.

-  Gently fold in pears, cranberries and walnuts – the mixture will be quite thick.

Local Cranberries

close up

Pears and cranberries added

Walnuts added

- Scoop the mixture into the lined 9″ x 13″ pan.  Make sure to even it all out so that it will bake evenly.

Ready to bake

- Bake until a toothpick placed near the center comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove and place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely before cutting into bars.

all cooked

-After the bars have completely cooled, pull the parchment paper on each side to remove bars.  Place on a cutting board, cut into squares and enjoy!

Ready to eat!

This recipe was really easy to make, as many bars are.  Definitely a delicious treat!