Category Archives: Recipes

No-cook Tomato Artichoke Pasta & Wildgrain Box

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Out of necessity, I’ve been minimizing my time in the kitchen this summer. The last couple months has been such a record-breaking scorcher that it’s been too hot to grill outside and even climbing into the sunbaked car to grab a meal out is unappealing.

But, one can only live on so many salads and charcuterie boards for dinner. What I really craved was a homemade pasta dinner (with dreamy noodles and warm bread) with that “I spent all day in the kitchen” taste without actually spending all day in the kitchen. Basically, SHOW ME A SHORTCUT!

My recipe for No-cook Tomato Artichoke Pasta (jump to recipe) came to the rescue served on fresh, hand-cut pasta from Wildgrain. Wildgrain is an amazing subscription box that sends artisanal pastas, breads and pastries to your door that are frozen and ready to prepare in a flash – no more than 25 minutes from freezer door opening to your mouth opening for the first bite!

Check out the video inspo for this recipe!

No-cook Tomato Artichoke Pasta involves absolutely no-simmering to turn out a flavorful tomato “sauce” for pasta (or even to top on fish, chicken or bruschetta). It’s based on an Italian uncooked tomato sauce pasta recipe called “Pasta Alla Checca.” Zero cooking, except for prepping the fresh noodles from Wildgrain on the stove top, which only takes 6 minutes. The tomato-artichoke sauce mixture gets “warmed up” as it is immediately stirred into the drained hot pasta. Basically, the pasta does the sauce heating – this puts new meaning into “using your noodle.” Lol!

Used fresh freezer-ready fettuccini from Wildgrain!

I used the season’s sweetest tomatoes plucked from my backyard. You could use any medium-sized variety of tomato such as Roma tomatoes – they are meaty, not overly juicy/easy, and easy in most markets. Then all that’s to be done is chopping tomatoes up very finely along with marinated artichokes, basil and garlic to create a fresh, light sauce that’s a lovely way to top off noodles and top off these long, long days.

For even more of a shortcut, you can make the raw chunky tomato artichoke sauce ahead and keep chilled in the fridge in a Mason jar for a couple days. Use on pasta or pile on crusty bread with mozzarella and stick under the broiler. Or toss into your egg scramble – so many uses!

Save $30 with code THEFITFORK (offer thru 8/30 . . . then it’s $10 off)

So let me tell you a little more about my new obsession, the Wildgrain Subscription Box (which BTW, you can save $30 on your first order with code THEFITFORK). Every month (pause or cancel at any time), I get a frozen shipment of tender pastas, artisan breads and pastries delivered to my door. All the labor-intensive work has been done for me – the dough has been hand-cut, the breads have been proofed, and the pastries prepped. Plus, no mess was made at my house, lol! All I do to enjoy these delights is place the breads straight oven or drop pasta into a pot, straight from frozen – no defrosting of anything needed meaning you can truly rely on Wildgrain for last-minute meals.

Other things I appreciate about Wildgrain: They use clean, non-GMO ingredients and their fermentation process provides benefits you won’t find at the grocery store. Items are always shipped free in and eco-friendly box and recyclable stay-cold packaging. Plus, they also support small bakeries and responsible source products from some of the best bread and pasta makers around the country. Honestly, I can taste the talent and love that goes into these breads, pastas and pastries.

Here’s a peek at what you get in a “mixed” box, although some contents will vary from month-to-month to keep those taste buds tantalized!

July Wildgrain Mixed Box: Plain Sourdough Loaf, Cranberry Pecan Sourdough Loaf, Everything Sourdough Loaf, Fettuccine Pasta, Tonnarelli Pasta, Peach Pie Bites, and free Croissants. 

Free croissants for life! Don’t miss this deal!

*Oh, and did I mention that if you order Wildgrain by the end of July, you get a free four-pack of croissants with every order “for life.”  Remember to use code THEFITFORK to save $30. These buttery, flakey, crescent-shaped pastries are truly heaven straight out of the oven.

Whip up a fresh fit meal in minutes with this easy, no-cook pasta sauce that features tomatoes, marinated artichokes, garlic and feta cheese - plus a little EVOO. It's tossed with hot noodles that warms it up! A delicious summer dinner! Used pasta from the Wildgrain subscription box, save $30 with code THEFITFORK at http://bit.ly/Wildgrain
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No-cook Tomato Artichoke Pasta | Pasta alla Checca
Prep Time
4 mins
Cook Time
6 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 

Whip up a fresh fit meal in minutes with this easy, no-cook pasta sauce that features tomatoes, marinated artichokes, garlic and feta cheese – plus a little EVOO. It's tossed with hot noodles that warms it up! A delicious summer meal!

Course: dinner, dinner, entree, Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: 10 minute meal, artichokes, fetuccini, pasta, summer, tomatoes
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 lb. fresh tomatoes about 3 to 4 medium
  • 3/4 cup marinated artichokes
  • 3 tbsp chopped basil
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 12- oz package fresh pasta
  • ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
  • Optional: garnish with additional chopped basil
Instructions
  1. Finely chop tomatoes and artichokes.
  2. Scrape into bowl along with any seeds and liquids that came out while chopping.
  3. Add chopped basil, minced garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil to bowl; stir to toss.
  4. Set tomato mixture aside to marinate while making pasta.
  5. Boil water in a large pot and cook pasta according to package instructions.*
  6. Drain pasta in colander and add back to pot while still hot.
  7. Pour in tomato mixture from bowl and toss around to coat pasta.
  8. Divide among 4 plates and top with crumbled feta cheese. Garnish with additional basil, if desired.
Recipe Notes

*The pasta I used from Wildgrain is put frozen into boiling water and cooks in 6 minutes.

Feta Egg Tomato Rings

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Easy summer meals, I love them from my head tomatoes! See what I did there, I’m punny (groan)! When summer brings me a bumper crop of tomatoes, I keep finding ways to use them up.

Any which way you slice it, this quick egg recipe is delicious and tastes like summer with sweet, ripe tomato, herby basil and salty feta cheese. Low-cal, but still lots of protein, a great quick breakfast or lunch idea.

These low-cal Feta Egg Tomato Rings are one of my favorite quick egg recipes of all time and make a healthy and nutritious breakfast, lunch or light dinner.

So easy to make this quick, 4-ingredient meal!

I was inspired by egg recipes that use a slice bell pepper for a ring to contain scrambled or sunny-side up egg. This egg and tomato breakfast hack also reminds me of “egg in a hole” toast where you use a biscuit cutter to remove a circle from the center of your toast, and then crack an egg in the middle.

The entire batch of this low-cal egg recipe has just 136 calories, 8g fat, 7g protein and 10g protein. Honestly, I’d make two for myself!

Pick tomatoes that are about 5 to 6 ounces and “medium ripe” — too ripe and the rings loose shape, too firm and the inside is too hard to smash up for the filling.

I used an approximate 6-ounce tomato (because that’s what I had), and it made 5 slices (discarding the small stem and bottom ends). I wouldn’t use a smaller tomato, but a bigger one would be great too – however, you may need to whisk up a second egg to accommodate the larger openings.

One of the keys to this egg tomato recipe is finding a glass that, when inverted, will “punch out” the center. Lol, I’m using a cordial glass in the video. Of course, you can also trim out the middle with a paring knife.

When you remove the center of the tomato slices, you want to save the tomato “guts” – e.g., the core, the seeds and the locular jelly (that’s the official term). Those are added to the fork-whisked egg and smashed up. If some parts of the core are too tough to mash, just discard that section. Each center took about 1 tablespoon of the whisked egg and tomato filling, which worked out perfectly. If you are using a larger tomato, you will need to whisk up a second egg.

Any which way you slice it, this quick egg recipe is delicious and tastes like summer with sweet, ripe tomato, herby basil and salty feta cheese. Low-cal, but still lots of protein, a great quick breakfast or lunch idea.

Once you spoon your egg mixture into the tomato ring and sprinkle with basil and feta (or your favorite cheese), they are cooked a few minutes until set – you will not be flipping. That’s it, whoo-hoo – you are finished with this easy egg recipe – serve on a salad, on a piece of whole-grain toast, or however moves your taste buds! Enjoy.

Any which way you slice it, this quick egg recipe is delicious and tastes like summer with sweet, ripe tomato, herby basil and salty feta cheese. Low-cal, but still lots of protein, a great quick breakfast or lunch idea. Find more healthy recipe to fuel an active lifestyle at thefitfork.com
5 from 4 votes
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Feta Tomato Egg Rings
Any which way you slice it, this quick egg recipe is delicious and tastes like summer with sweet, ripe tomato, herby basil and salty feta cheese.
Course: Breakfast, brunch, lunch
Keyword: egg, low cal, tomato
Calories: 136 kcal
Ingredients
  • 1 5 to 6 ounce tomato
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon crumbled feta
  • Dash salt and pepper
  • 1 teaspoon chopped basil
Instructions
  1. Slice tomato crosswise, in approximate 1/3” slices, discarding small stem and bottom ends.
  2. Use small glass or paring knife to remove the seeds, locular jelly and core (save all of this) from tomato. This creates the delicate rings.
  3. In a small bowl, fork-whisk egg. Add tomato “guts,” tossing away any core pieces that are too hard to smash up with a fork.
  4. Carefully add rings to a non-stick skillet. Fill each ring with approximately 1 tablespoon of the egg-tomato mixture. I had 5 rings and the filling amount worked out perfectly, If you use a bigger tomato, you may need another egg.
  5. Sprinkle egg mixture with crumbled feta cheese and basil.
  6. Cook over medium heat until center set and firm to touch, about 4 to 5 minutes. You will NOT be flipping. Serve with salad, on toast or however desired!
Recipe Notes

Mushroom Swiss Omelet Quesadilla | Easy Breakfast “Omelet-adilla”

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True. I did see this viral egg and quesadilla hack on TikTok. But in reality, I’ve been making and eating egg quesadillas for decades. DECADES!  

Omelet meets quesadilla in this quick and easy egg recipe that is satisfying for any meal of the day -- breakfast, lunch or dinner!
This photo isn’t doing justice to how fun and clever this recipe is — watch the video below!

Growing up in the 70s, when it was my dad’s turn to cook a meal, he would usually make us an omelet or quesadilla. This was back in the day before dads really cooked OR people even knew what a quesadilla was. So, I thought he was pretty cool!  

It was only a matter of time before the eggs met up with the cheese and tortilla. Honestly, it’s a match made in heaven. As my taste buds grew up, my love for omelets and quesadillas didn’t wane. Total comfort food to me! I started adding a variety of veggies to jazz it up and make a little more balanced meal – that works for breakfast, lunch OR dinner, by the way!

Omelet meets quesadilla in this quick and easy egg recipe that is satisfying for any meal of the day -- breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Spinach and mushroom are a classic veggie combo and one of my favorites. Something about mushrooms just plays so well with eggs – it’s a plant-based umami experience. If preferred, the veggies can be swapped out for others that soften up nice and quick in a sauté pan. Think of onions, leeks, grape tomatoes, bell peppers, shaved Brussels sprouts or cabbage, chopped kale, and such.

Omelet meets quesadilla in this quick and easy egg recipe that is satisfying for any meal of the day -- breakfast, lunch or dinner!
I love mushrooms & spinach, but you can swap out for other veggies in this adaptable recipe!

The two eggs, an ounce of cheese and a nine-inch tortilla offer about 22 to 25g protein (even more if you can find a protein tortilla). But, if you want even a bigger protein bump, add a small handful of shredded chicken, beef or diced ham. This quesadilla hack is very adaptable to your custom desires.

Omelet meets quesadilla in this quick and easy egg recipe that is satisfying for any meal of the day -- breakfast, lunch or dinner!
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The Mushroom Swiss Omelet Quesadilla is such a great meal for anytime of the day, especially when you are pressed for time or fancy ingredients. Once you start making using this egg tortilla hack, you’ll never go back!   

5 from 3 votes
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Mushroom Swiss Omelet Quesadilla

Omelet meets quesadilla in this quick and easy egg recipe that is satisfying for any meal of the day — breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Course: Breakfast, lunch
Keyword: egg, omelet, quesadilla
Servings: 1 serving
Ingredients
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • ½ cup slice mushrooms
  • ½ cup chopped fresh spinach
  • 1 to 2 oz grated Swiss cheese
  • 1 large 9” to 10” tortilla sized to fit your skillet
  • Garnish: Avocado slices
Instructions
  1. Whisk two eggs, water, salt and pepper in bowl; set aside.
  2. Bring 9 to 10-inch non-stick skillet up to medium heat; add oil.
  3. Add mushrooms to skillet and saute for about 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Add spinach and stir around for another 30 seconds or until wilted a bit. Spread out evenly in bottom of pan.
  4. Pour whisked egg over vegetables, tilting pan and swirling egg a bit to cover entire skillet.
  5. Cook for about 2 minutes (without stirring) until almost set; just very lightly wet still on top.
  6. Top with half the cheese and tortilla.
  7. Carefully shimmy spatula under egg mixture to flip entire thing tortilla side down.
  8. Add remaining cheese to top egg side and cook an additional 1 minute.
  9. Flip tortilla in half (for a half-circle) and cook for another 1 minute on each side until tortilla golden brown.
  10. Cut in three wedges and serve with avocado.

Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust

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This post is sponsored by Karoun Dairies as part of a blogger recipe contest.

Treat yourself to pizza night, but don’t you dare resort to frozen or consider take out.! That’s because I have something even easier and so much better — My Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust.

Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust is a quick and easy dinner or appetizer solution that is ready in less than 30 minutes. The no-rise, three-ingredient crust features labne, a creamy kefir cheese, that keeps the quick crust tender yet crispy. Try the genius tip to make a “pull apart” crust so no pizza cutter or knife required. Top with your favorite veggies. So fun for a quick dinner or appetizer to share.

Ready in just about 30 minutes (can delivery beat that?!), this simple pizza for two (or one, if you’re real hungry) even features a homemade crust!

So much to say about this homemade crust. In need no rising, you just mix together three simple ingredients including flour (can swap in a gluten-free flour blend in needed), baking powder and labne (a thick, creamy, tangy kefir cheese resembling Greek yogurt, my opinion).  The labne helps keep the 3 ingredient crust delicious and tender on the inside, but crispy on the outside.

The flour-labne mixture will be a little crumbly, just ditch you spatula after a while and knead it together with your hands. Then, THIS IS NEAT, instead of doing a traditional crust rolled out and pinched up around the edges, make a pull-apart crust so that you (or you and a friend) can pull off a little pizza nibble at a time.

Labne Mediterranean style Kefir cheese from Karoun Dairies makes is the star in this three-ingredient, no-rise crust.

To do this, the big pizza dough ball is formed into smaller (about 1”) dough balls. This recipe yielded about 18 dough balls for me, but it doesn’t have to be a precise science. Those little balls are pressed down onto the pan (a 9” to 10” pan) until flattened into about ¼” thickness and the edges mostly meet. There may be a few places were a tiny bit of pan peeks through edge-to edge, that’s okay!

Labne Mediterranean style Kefir cheese from Karoun Dairies makes is the star in this three-ingredient, no-rise crust.

After the dough balls are pressed into the pan, top with cheese and veggies. Also, to make this pizza next level delicious and creamy, I like to dollop up to 1/2 cup more Labne Mediterranean Kefir Cheese. Then maybe a little more shredded cheese, because can you really have too much cheese on a pizza?!

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, top with extra garnishes as desired, and enjoy! You don’t even need a knife or pizza cutter to enjoy this pull-apart crust pizza recipe.  Just grab the edge and give a little tug and you will be rewarded with a bite-sized morsel of creamy, cheesy, veggie loaded goodness. I love a labne pizza!

Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust is a quick and easy dinner or appetizer solution that is ready in less than 30 minutes. The no-rise, three-ingredient crust features labne, a creamy kefir cheese, that keeps the quick crust tender yet crispy. Try the genius tip to make a “pull apart” crust so no pizza cutter or knife required. Top with your favorite veggies. So fun for a quick dinner or appetizer to share.

I’m so glad I found this Labne Mediterranean kefir cheese. In the past I’ve made a similar crust with plain yogurt, but I don’t think it turned out as tender and satisfying.  

Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust is a quick and easy dinner or appetizer solution that is ready in less than 30 minutes. The no-rise, three-ingredient crust features labne, a creamy kefir cheese, that keeps the quick crust tender yet crispy. Try the genius tip to make a “pull apart” crust so no pizza cutter or knife required. Top with your favorite veggies. So fun for a quick dinner or appetizer to share.
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 Since this may be a new type of cheese to you, let me tell you more about it. Labne Mediterranean Kefir Cheese from Karoun Dairies is a centuries-old, Mediterranean-style spreadable kefir. The taste is distinctively tangy, but pleasing! It’s smoother and thicker than yogurt and reminds me of a cross between Greek yogurt and cream cheese – oh my, so good and creamy!  It’s lower in fat than cream cheese and makes great alternative for a healthy lifestyle. Plus you also benefit from live probiotic cultures in every spoonful.

Visit Karoun Cheese to learn more or check them out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for the latest news and recipes! #karoun, #karoundairies, #karounlabne, #labne

5 from 4 votes
Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust is a quick and easy dinner or appetizer solution that is ready in less than 30 minutes. The no-rise, three-ingredient crust features labne, a creamy kefir cheese, that keeps the quick crust tender yet crispy. Try the genius tip to make a “pull apart” crust so no pizza cutter or knife required. Top with your favorite veggies. So fun for a quick dinner or appetizer to share.
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Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
12 mins
Total Time
22 mins
 

 Veggie & Labne Pizza with Pull-Apart Crust is a quickand easy dinner or appetizer solution that is ready in less than 30 minutes. Theno-rise, three-ingredient crust features labne, a creamy kefir cheese, thatkeeps the quick crust tender yet crispy. Try the genius tip to make a “pullapart” crust so no pizza cutter or knife required. Top with your favorite veggies. So fun for a quick dinner or appetizerto share.

Course: Appetizer, dinner, dinner, entree, pizza, starter
Cuisine: Italian, Mediterranean
Keyword: appetizer, blue cheese, labne, pizza
Servings: 2
Ingredients
  • ½ cup Karoun Mediterranean-style Labne Kefir cheese
  • 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
  • 1 cup flour or gluten-free flour baking blend
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic salt
  • 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella divided
  • 1/2 cup Karoun Mediterranean-style Labne Kefir cheese
  • 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup shredded spinach
  • ¼ cup red onion slices
  • ¼ cup chopped tomato
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400F.
  2. In medium bowl, mix together Labne, baking powder and flour with spoon. Will be crumbly, then use hands to knead it together into a cohesive dough ball.
  3. Pinch of 1-inch dough balls (I got approximately 18) and place on a 9-inch to 10-inch pizza pan.
  4. Press balls down with fingers until flattened and edges mostly touching. It’s okay if there are a few spots of pan showing through.
  5. Sprinkle dough with garlic salt. Sprinkle with ½ cup shredded mozzarella and vegetables.
  6. Dollop up to ½ cup additional Karoun Mediterranean-style Labne Kefir cheese on top of veggies. Sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup of reserved mozzarella.
  7. Bake for approximately 12 minutes or until crust browned and cheese bubbling.
  8. No need for a knife or pizza cutter, just pull apart into pizza bites!

Air Fryer Banana with Oatmeal Cookie Crumble Topping

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Air Fryer Bananas are the latest trend going around with the recipe crowd on social media . . . and I can see why this banana dessert recipe is so “a-peeling.” LOL!  In minutes, you can make an amazing banana dessert that cooks right in the skin, has almost no prep or clean-up, can be scaled up easily depending on the size and appetite of your crowd, and is incredibly delicious.

Banana dessert recipe, Air fryer bananas, Simple dessert recipe, banana recipes

When my kids were little, we used to frequently grill banana “boats” in foil and this air fryer banana recipe seemed like a similar concept to me!

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I decided to dress up my version of Air Fryer Bananas with a crumbled topping (reminiscent of a fruit crisp topping) but with the vibe of a comforting homemade oatmeal cookie!

The banana flesh softens quickly in the air fryer into a spoonable delight, and the buttery topping with oats, raisins and pecans browns up into a yummy crust.

Air Fryer Bananas are so EASY to make!

An Air Fryer Banana with Oatmeal Cookie Crumble Topping is ah-mazing served warm, as is – or pair up with something creamy like Greek yogurt, ice cream, or cottage cheese blended with a few drops of stevia.

Banana dessert recipe, Air fryer bananas, Simple dessert recipe, banana recipes
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P.S. I use the Omni Plus XL Air Fryer Toaster Oven from Instant Pot — it’s like a little oven for my countertop — it broils, roasts, bakes air-frys and more plus I love the larger capacity and how the door and shelves work similar to my traditional oven set up. It’s just easy!

This is the toaster over – air fryer I use , the Omni XL from Instant.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for purchases made, however the price to you remains the same. Proceeds are used to offset operating expenses for The Fit Fork. Thank you!

5 from 6 votes
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Air Fryer Banana with Oatmeal Cookie Crumble Topping
Prep Time
2 mins
Cook Time
8 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 

Quick, easy and absolutely delicious, this simple dessert recipe features a banana air-fryed right in the it's skin. A healthier option for dessert — serve with Greek yogurt for extra "a-peel"!

Course: Dessert, Snack
Keyword: air fryer, banana, dessert
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 large banana
  • 1 ½ Tbsp. butter melted
  • 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp. coconut sugar date sugar or brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsp rolled oats
  • 2 Tbsp gluten-free baking blend
  • 1 Tbsp chopped raisins
  • 1 Tbsp chopped pecans
  • Toppings of choice
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat air-fryer to 350F .
  2. Slice banana in half crosswise and place in basket.
  3. In small bowl, mix up remaining ingredients (except toppings) into a “dough” and press onto each half of banana. Cook in air-fryer for about 5 to 8 minutes or until top golden brown.
  4. Serve hot with toppings of choice like whipped cream, ice cream, yogurt or whatever pleases you.
Recipe Notes