Cheddar Zucchini Chips in the air fryer are a quick, easy and flavor-packed appetizer to serve with your favorite dip or side dish that pairs with most everything.
This zucchini snack is is also low-carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly – plus, it only made with a few wholesome ingredients.
For the best, crispy zucchini chips, make sure that the vegetable is cut thiny in about ¼” inch crosswise slices. If you notice excess moisture on the cut zucchini, pat dry with a paper towel. This is how to keep zucchini chips from getting soggy.
The “breading” isn’t the traditional flour or panko – it’s crushed all-cheese snacks (popular brands are Moon Cheese Snack, Just the Cheese and Whisps Cheese Crisps) along with almond meal and dried herbs. These simple ingredients, held on with an egg wash, ensure these remain low carb zucchini chips – with a surprise bonus of more than 10 grams of protein per serving!
This keto cheddar zucchini chip recipe makes four servings – that’s about 10 “chips” give or take. It’s a satisfying way to use up zucchini and each portion comes in at 154 caloires, 3.9g net carb, 10.5g fat, 10.7g protein.
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I used my Omni Pro Air Fryer from from Instant Pot to make my favorite zucchini recipe. In just about 6 to 8 minutes, an air fryer gets everything nice and crisp. You CAN use a traditional oven at 400F degrees for about 10 to 12 minutes, carefully flipping the chips halfway through.
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A low-carb, gluten-free and keto-friendly way to snack and get more vegetables in your day! These easy air fryer zucchini chips use just a few simple ingredients and are done in minutes – perfect for game day entertaining or a delicious side dish and alternative to fries.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Chia Pudding with Praline Crumble will satisfy your fall flavor cravings and soothe a sweet tooth – in a healthier way!
Sweetened with zero-carb stevia (or monk fruit) to keep the carbs down, this no-cook recipe features pumpkin, cottage cheese, and chia seeds, all nutritional powerhouse in their own right.
First, just the fact that chia means “strength” in ancient Mayan culture, speaks for itself. A two-tablespoon serving of chia seeds has 11g fiber, 4g protein and 9g fats (5g of which are coveted Omega 3 fatty acids). There are so many health benefits of chia seeds! These teeny-tiny seeds absorb up to 8x their weight in liquid and take on a gelatinous texture. The gel-like texture doesn’t appeal to some folks, but you’ll never notice it once it’s mixed in with the creamy (blended!) cottage cheese and pumpkin.
Pumpkin adds even more fiber to the recipe, bringing the fiber count in each serving size of this pumpkin chia pudding recipe up to 14g! That’s a big head start on your total daily recommended amount – 25g dietary fiber for women, or 35g for men. These are these are generalizations, but basically, you should aim to have 14g of fiber from every 1000 calories you eat, regardless of gender. Pumpkin is also packed with antioxidants, especially beta carotene which is responsible for the signature orange color. Our body’s convert beta carotene into vitamin A, which may help provide some protection against certain cancers and cardiovascular disease, among other benefits.
And blended cottage cheese, that’s my secret life hack to adding more creaminess and protein to recipes. Not a fan of the curds in cottage cheese, so that’s why I always come home from the store and blend my whole container up for use later in various dishes and recipes. There are many creative uses for cottage cheese like this pumpkin spice chia pudding, to stir into oats, smoothies, baked potatoes – and also as a ricotta cheese alternative in lasagna and other recipes of the sort.
The pecan praline topping is very simple to make, it’s just chopped pecans that have been tossed around in a skillet with butter and the sugar alternative of your choice – I used a “brown sugar” monk fruit sweetener, but coconut sugar or date sugar are also options. While the chia puddings are chilling out in the fridge to set up, I make this buttery, rich topping and then let it cool to crumble on top before serving! So delicious!
By the way, I like to meal prep chia pudding in glass jars, a 12-ounce canning jar or jelly jar is just the right size – or 16 ounce will work too! But you also have the options of just keeping batch in one big bow and taking out as much as needed, or using plastic food storage containers. If taking in your gym bag or brown bagging it a lunch, a small insulated container will keep it cold! Whatever’s your preference!
Nutrition Facts: 357 calories, 26g total carb (10g net carb, 16g fiber), 18g protein.
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Chia Pudding with Pecan Praline Crumble
Prep Time
5mins
Total Time
30mins
Pumpkin Cheesecake Chia Pudding with Pecan Praline Crumble makes a quick, easy and nutritious breakfast, snack or healthy dessert. Natural sweeteners used to keep the carbs low and cottage cheese to help boost the protein — plus more than 1/2 daily requirement for fiber! For more clean eating recipes, visit thefitfork.com
Cuisine:
breakfast, dessert, snack
Keyword:
chia seed, cottage cheese, high fiber, low carb, pumpkin
Calories: 357kcal
Ingredients
3/4cup2% cottage cheeseblended smooth
1cupunsweetened almond milk
3/4cupno-sugar added pumpkin puree from can
1tsppumpkin pie spice
2tablespoonstevia or monk fruit “brown” sugar *divided
½cupchia seeds
1tablespoonsbuttersoftened
1-ouncetoasted chopped pecansabout ¼ cup
Instructions
Blend cottage cheese, milk, and pumpkin together in blender pitcher until smooth. **
Pulse in pumpkin pie spice, 1 tbsp. brown-sugar alternative sweetener, and chia seeds until well combined.
Pour evenly among 3 jars or small containers with lids (approx. 12-oz capacity). Place in fridge and chill for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.
Meanwhile, make pecan topping by melting butter in small pan. Stir in pecans and remaining 1 tbsp. alternative brown sugar, letting bubble and caramelize for a minute or two, taking care not to burn. Cool.
To serve, crumble on chia puddings. Can add a dollop of yogurt or whipped cream, if desired.
Recipe Notes
*OR, can substitute coconut sugar or date sugar (this will increase the nutrition facts
** Sometimes, I pre-blend my entire tub of cottage cheese as soon as I get home from the store, so I can use it in recipes like this, in smoothies, in potatoes, in oatmeal, baked recipes and more. If you DO pre-blend, then you can just add all ingredients to a jar and shake, no need to blend.
Let’s hear it for steak night in the middle of the week, whoot-whoot! My recipe for Air Fryer Montreal Steak Bites with Spicy Tomato Butter and Spinach-Quinoa is ready in 20 minutes or less, delivers tender and juicy morsels of beef, and will have any-old work or school night dinner feeling a little extra special.
Honestly, learning how to cook steak in an air fryer has been my best life hack lately. Typically, I only grill or pan sear /oven finish steaks and was feeling wary and anxious that air frying beef (especially cut up chunks of good steak) might yield an overdone, dried-out result. BUT NOT TRUE, these air fryer steak bites were succulent and mouthwatering through and through.
First you need to start with a tender cut of beef for best results in the Air Fryer. Tenderloin or filet mignon cut into chunks would be to-die-for, but more affordable cuts like flat iron, top sirloin or strip steak are still very tender, but cost a fraction of the price. I used Flat Iron steaks which rank second in tenderness among common beef cuts, deferring only to tenderloin. And the price difference is often $10 a pound less!
The simplicity of this beef air fryer recipe is what makes it a winner, it addition the incredible flavor. Bite-sized chunks of steak are drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with a purchased Montreal seasoning (an iconic spice blend of garlic, coriander, dill, black pepper, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper). Then it’s just a matter of pre-heating the air fryer to 400F degrees and then cooking steak for about 8 to 10 minutes, no flipping needed!
Please note that you do not want to overcrowd the air fryer pan, this will hamper circulation and the final result may not be as tasty. Place your choice of cut up tender steak like flat iron steaks in Air Fryer. Don’t pile up, place in a single later and give a little space between each steak bite. My Air Fryer comfortably holds about ½ pound of steak bites at a time – so I prepare in two batches, which is really no big deal because it will take about 15 minutes to cook the quinoa that I serve with this easy beef dinner. Currently, I’m using the Instant Pot® Duo Crisp which is an ahhhh-mazing kitchen appliance with 11 functions – air-frying, pressure cook, slow cooker, steamer, sauté pan, food warmer, sous vide, roaster, mini oven, broiler, and dehydrator. But, did you know that Instant Pot also makes stand-alone, serious-business air-fryers? Check out the Vortex air fryers (pictured above) that have all the latest, super-crispy technology!
I start my quinoa at the same time as the air-fryer – it usually takes about 15 minutes to make light and fluffy quinoa on the stove top (and even less just to defrost and reheat, if I’ve have quinoa meal prepped in the freezer). Once the quinoa is finished, simple stir in a cup or so of chopped fresh spinach while it’s hot – it will automatically wilt down.
Now, all that is left is making the spicy tomato butter – a 1 minute deal! Melt butter and stir in tomato pesto (already prepared spicy or sweeter sun-dried tomato with a little dried red pepper to taste).
To serve, place Montreal steak bites on bed of spinach quinoa and drizzle with the tomato butter! Or, to serve as a crowd-pleasing air fryer beef appetizer, simply skip the quinoa and set out the steak bites with spicy tomato butter along with toothpicks for dipping.
A nicely portioned, balanced and nourishing meal to fuel an active lifestyle with 367 calories, 18g fat, 16g net cart, and 29g protein for one-fourth of the recipe yield (but I may have eaten more, just sayin’ – lol)
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Air Fryer Montreal Steak Bites with Spicy Tomato Butter and Spinach-Quinoa
Cook Time
16mins
Total Time
20mins
Amazingly easy and delicious! Create quick air-fryer dinner with beef steak bites that turns out tender and just every time — served with spicy tomato butter sauce and spinach-quinoa toss!
Course:
dinner, dinner, entree
Keyword:
air fryer, beef, flat iron, sirloin, steak
Servings: 4servings
Calories: 367kcal
Ingredients
2/3 cupquinoa, rinsedto yield 2 cups cooked
1 1/3cupwater
1lb.beef flat iron steaksor top sirloin or other tender cut
2tsp.olive oil
2tsp.Montreal seasoning
1cupchopped fresh spinach
3tbspbutter
1tbsptomato pesto
1/4 tspdried red pepper flaker, or more to taste
Instructions
Bring water to boil, add quinoa. Reduce to simmer, add lid, cook for 15 minutes, or until all water absorbed. When done, stir in chopped spinach, set aside, keeping lid on pot to stay warm.
Meanwhile, after starting quinoa bring air fryer up to 400F heat.
Cut steaks into 1 ½” chunks, place in bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Montreal seasoning. Stir until evenly coated.
Place steak bites into hot tray of Air Fryer, if your air fryer is small, don not overcrowd, simply prepare in two batches.
Air fry for 8 to 10 minutes and remove tray from heat.
While beef cooking, prepare spicy tomato butter by stirring pesto and red pepper flakes into melted butter.
Portion plates with spinach quinoa and beef bites, drizzle with spicy tomato butter.
Nom, nom, No-bake Chocolate Cashew Oat Bars! In the summer, I’m always looking for a chocolate treat that doesn’t require me to turn on the oven and won’t melt in my hot hands. Chocolate lovers and cashew lovers alike will love to chill out with these easy-make homemade granola bars that are a simple as mixing, mashing into a loaf pan and the sticking in the fridge for a few minutes before cutting.
Many similar cashew chocolate oat bar recipes use ingredients such as honey, maple syrup or pureed dates to sweeten and bind them – absolutely nothing wrong with that, those are smart options to sugar. However, in an effort to moderate the carbohydrates (but still keep a few from the oats for energy), I use various substitutes like a sugar-free honey alternative and monk fruit – this help me keep the carbs to just 14g per bar. Low carb treats not your thing? Then feel free to swap back in the traditional sugar ingredients – the recipe will turn out just as well, just the macros will be different.
I also add unflavored collagen powder to my bowl, to add a boost of protein and to provide extra nourishment for overall wellness (and my arthritic joints). I’ve used the Great Lakes Wellness brand for several years and have been really happy with the results – you should check them out and use THEFITFORK10OFF if you need a discount
Each batch of these No-bake Chocolate Cashew Oat Bars makes 12 bars and for 162 calories each, offers about 7.5g protein per bar with 10g fat and only 14g carbs. These are also gluten-free chocolate cashew oat bars, if that is a concern.
Disclaimer: this post contains affiliate links. I receive a small commission from sales, however price to you remains the same.
save 10% Great Lakes Wellness collagen and products with code THEFITFORK10off
A delicious, nourishing snack! These NO-BAKE bars come together quickly to satisfy hunger pains! Made with sugar alternatives to moderate carbs. Gluten free.
1/3cupsugar-free honey substitutemay use regular honey
1cupoat flour
1cupold fashioned rolled oats
3tbspcocoa powder
4tbspunflavored collagenmay use another protein powder
½cupchopped cashews
3tbspgranulated monk fruit sweetenermay use a different sugar substitute
½tspsalt
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, melted coconut oil and honey alternative. In another bowl, toss together oat flour, rolled oats, cocoa powder, collagen powder, sugar alternative, chopped cashews and salt. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients, stir together with spatula. Mixture should look like cookie dough. Press mixture into 9×5”-ish loaf pan and use clean hands to smash down and flatten smooth on top. Place pan in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up before slicing into 12 bars. Store in fridge.
Winner, winner easy fish dinner! Pan-seared Lingcod with Creamy Burst Tomato Sauce is brilliantly delicious, so easy to make, low-carb on its own, but a family favorite with that creamy sauce sliding over into rice, potatoes or noodles. I’ve noticed that even the non-fish fans in my family are licking the plate!
This easy fish recipe takes less than 30 minutes to make and is perfect for quick, weeknight meals – but also snazzy enough to serve on a special occasion.
I used mild, white lingcod from Sitka Salmon Shares for this skillet fish recipe (it reminds me a lot of halibut). This fisherman’s co-op reels in the BEST wild Alaskan seafood (salmon, cod, sablefish, king crab, and more) and ships it straight to your door, it’s been my go-to fish source now for two years. Visit them at sitkasalmonshares.com and use my code FITFORK to save $25 on a premium share!
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Other firm white fish will work too like halibut, cod, pollock, haddock, and such. It’s really up to your preference. Pan sauté skinless filets that have been seasoned simply with salt and pepper. After just cooked through, remove from skillet temporarily while making the sauce.
The sauce is fresh and simple. In the same unwashed skillet that the fish was cooked in, add whole grapes and sauté until they start to pop. Then finish bursting tomatoes with a fork – piercing the skin to let the juices out and then mashing down before, pouring in a little veggie stock to deglaze the pan. Season this sauce for the lingcod fish recipe with garlic, Italian seasoning and a little paprika – then stir in some heavy cream to give this sauce that rich and luxurious mouthfeel.
Gently add back in the cooked fish, spoon sauce over top of filets to coat and sprinkle with chopped fresh basil.
