8 Deliciously Healthy Student Recipes

Eating healthy doesn't need to be hard or, worse, taste bad. It also doesn't need to be part of some self-imposed stressful attempt to force New Year's Resolutions that we ultimately never achieve. It should be part of a positive, overall healthy lifestyle for #livingyourbestlife.

As part of health and wellness education at Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child, seventh- and eighth-grade students learned about healthy eating and the health of the planet. Throughout the fall, students were tasked with creating healthy recipes that they would then share with the school community. Below is just a sampling of some of the recipes created. Have your own healthy recipe to share? Leave it for us below in the comments!

Interested in more healthy recipes from Oak Knoll? Follow #healthyrecipesOKS on Twitter.

1. Chocolate Overnight Oats

Makes three servings

Ingredients:

• Bananas
• 2 ½ cups of almond milk 
• 1 ½  tablespoons of cocoa powder
• 1 ½ cups of whole grain oats
• 4 tablespoons of honey
• 2 teaspoon of vanilla Extract

Recipe:

To make this delicious breakfast meal, first get a medium-sized container (I would recommend a Tupperware bowl with an airtight lid). Then add the oats, almond milk, cocoa powder, honey, vanilla extract and stir them together. Taste the chocolate liquid and add honey and cocoa powder to taste. Then secure the lid and place the oats in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 6 hours. Although the oats taste great cold, I would recommend heating them up in a bowl to a warmer temperature (about 45 seconds on high in the microwave for one serving). Finally, cut up your preferred amount of bananas and place them in your bowl of oats. Enjoy!

- Cora Laborde, Grade 7

2. Healthy Granola Bars

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups of gluten-free rolled oats
• 1 1/3 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1 cup SunButter
• 1 cups of ground flax seeds
• 2/3 cups of local Honey
• 2/3 cup sugar-free chocolate chips
• 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Using a piece of parchment paper, press the mixture very firmly into a 9×13 pan. Freeze for about one hour covered and slice into squares or bars using a sharp knife.

-Brynne Grant, Grade 8

3. Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda 
• ¼ teaspoon of salt
• 3 bananas, mashed
• ½ cup of granulated sugar 
• 1 egg
• ⅓ unsalted butter

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and put muffin tins in pan. 
• Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.
• In a large both combine mashed bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter in a large bowl.
• Fold dry ingredients into the large bowl with the dry ingredients, mixing them together. 
• Using an ice cream scooper, put the batter in each muffin tin. 
• Bake for 25-30 minutes in muffin pans. Let cool for ten minutes on a wire rack before serving. 

-Christina Nestor, Grade 8

4. French Crepe

Ingredients: 

1. Any amount wanted of fruit of choice (recommend bananas or strawberries)
2. 1 cup of Coconut Flour or Oat Flour
3. ½ teaspoon of honey
4. 6 egg whites
5. 2 cups soy milk
6. ½ tablespoon of melted butter
7. (optional) a pinch of salt

Other materials needed:

• Griddle or frying pan
• Electric mixer
• Two large bowls
• Mixing utensils such as a whisk and spoons
• Spatula 

Instructions:

1. First, put your coconut or oat flour, honey, and (optional) salt into a bowl and mix together. 
2. Next, take a separate large bowl and put your egg whites and soy milk in and beat with an electric mixer. 
3. Beat the flour and honey mixture into the large bowl with the eggs and milk until smooth. 
4. Then, stir the melted butter into the mixture.
5. Heat a griddle or frying pan over medium-high heat. 
6. Slowly pour or scoop the crepe mixture onto the pan using approximately 2-4 tablespoons for each crepe.
7. Tip and rotate the pan to spread the batter as evenly and thinly as possible around the entire pan.
8. Let the crepe cook until you see the edges start to turn light brown, and then gently flip the crepe to cook on its other side.
9. Let the crepe cook on its other side until it is light brown or your preferable color, and put onto a plate.
10.  Finally, you can fold the crepe in half, and then fold it in half again and add any toppings you would like such as fruits and enjoy!

-Avery Drone, Grade 7

5. Pasta Fazool

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon of Avocado Oil
• 12 Ounces of chickpeas
• 1 stalk of celery, diced
• 3 ounces of chives, diced
• ¾ cup of Zoodles (zucchini pasta)
• 3 cups of vegetable broth, or more as needed, divided
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3 cups chopped Swiss chard
• 15 ounce of lentils
• ½ cups of diced tomatoes

Prep: Cook: Ready in:

10 mins  25 mins 35 mins

Directions:

This recipe makes enough for 2 large portions or 4 smaller ones.

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in Chickpeas until warm, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add diced celery and chopped chives. Cook until chives are translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the Zoodles. Cook and stir 2 minutes.
2. Stir in ¼ diced tomatoes until evenly distributed, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 3 cups vegetable broth. Raise heat to high and bring to a simmer. Add salt, black pepper, pepper flakes, and oregano. When soup comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium and let it simmer about 5 minutes, stirring often. Check soup consistency and add more broth, if needed.
3. Place chopped chard in a bowl. Cover with cold water and rinse the leaves; any grit will fall to the bottom of the bowl. Transfer chard to colander to drain briefly; add to soup. Cook and stir until leaves wilt, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Stir in lentils; continue cooking and stirring until the Zoodles are perfectly cooked, another 4 or 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in ¼ cup of diced tomatoes. Serve topped with grated cheese, if desired.

- Ava Claire Lago, Grade 7

6. Banana Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Banana Peanut Butter Frosting 

Brownie Ingredients:

• ½ cup of mashed bananas
• 1 cup of honey
• 2 egg whites
• ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup of Carob powder
• ½ cup of Rye Flour
• A pinch of salt
• ¼ teaspoon of baking powder

 Frosting Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons of mashed bananas
• 2 tablespoons of Carob Powder
• 1 ½ teaspoon of honey
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1 cup of confectioners sugar
• ⅓ teaspoon of peanut butter

 Instructions for Brownie:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. After preheating your oven put all the dry ingredients in one separate bowl. The dry ingredients are carob powder, rye flour, salt, and baking powder. In that bowl mix the dry ingredients together. Make sure that the ingredients are fully mixed.
3. In a different bowl put all the wet ingredients together. The wet ingredients are the bananas, honey, egg whites, and vanilla extract. Just like the dry ingredients mix it until it is fully mixed.
4. The next thing you do is mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. You can use an electric mixer or just a spatula. You will slowly and in little bits pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. If you are using an electric mixer, one tip is when you are pouring the dry ingredients to place a towel around the mixer so the dry ingredients won’t make a mess over you. Another tip is to stop the mixer to dry ingredients and then turn it on to mix it.
5. Once the brownie batter is mixed you should take a brownie pan and cover the pan with parchment paper. If you put parchment paper on the pan the brownies won’t stick to the pan. You should be slowing pour brownie batter in the pan. Using a spatula spread the brownie batter so it is smooth across the top surface and the sides. Using oven mitts place the brownie batter in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until your fork comes out clean with no uncooked brownie batter on it.
6. Let it cool 20 minutes before eating or frosting the brownies 

Frosting Instructions:

1. Put all the frosting ingredients in one bowl and mix it until it is a creamy mixture. If you want to add color add only a little drop of food coloring. I don’t recommend food coloring because it might stain your tongue or mouth.
2. Wait until the brownies are cool to frost them and then enjoy your healthy treat.

- Melissa Dardanello, Grade 7

7. Vegan Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups gluten free flour 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup organic coconut sugar
• 3 large bananas 
• 1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chips

Directions:

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium/large size bowl and set aside.  In a small bowl, mix oil, sugar and vanilla. Mash bananas, you should have approx. 1 1/2 – 1 3/4 cups. Add the wet ingredients and bananas to batter and mix until just combined. Add in chocolate chips and mix briefly. Spoon into a paper lined muffin tin, fill each muffin about 2/3 – 3/4 full. Place in the oven, on the center rack, and bake for about 20 – 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 min. (Makes about 12 muffins.)

- Lucy Duttenhofer, Grade 8

8. Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups pulled chicken
• 8 cups water
• 1 cup carrots
• 3 sage leaves
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• 8 oz wild rice
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup chopped onions
• ¼ cup chopped celery

Directions:

1. In a large pot, saute celery and onion in olive oil
2. Add chicken, carrots, water, pepper, sage leaves and parsley.  Simmer for 30 minutes
3. Add wild rice and simmer for 10 more minutes