Homemade granola just hits different—especially when it’s packed with protein, fiber, and healthy fats to keep you satisfied and energized. This Cinnamon Spiced Granola is made with just a few real-food ingredients, has the perfect crunch, and adds a warm, toasty flavor to breakfast bowls (think yogurt, blended smoothies yum!)

Why Make Your Own Granola?

To be honest, I started making my own homemade granola because my husband is a granola junkie. lol. In his own journey to health (more on that another time), he found t very hard to pack in protein at breakfast without using high protein yogurts. But in order for him to eat the plain, unsweetened high protein yogurts, he said he needed some sort of crunch and texture. Store-bought granolas are often loaded with refined sugars and unhealthy oils, which, we generally avoid at our hose, and also specifically for my husband and his healing journey, was out. This homemade version is:

• Naturally sweetened with maple syrup—just enough to enhance the flavors
• Packed with healthy fats & fiber from walnuts and chia seeds for sustained energy
• Spiced with cinnamon, which can help support blood sugar balance
• Versatile—enjoy it over yogurt, smoothie bowls, or by the handful!

How to Use it

Sprinkle this Cinnamon Spiced Granola over:
Cottage cheese for a high-protein, satisfying snack
Smoothie bowls for extra crunch & fiber
Sliced apples & almond butter for a balanced snack
Straight from the jar because it’s that good- but if you’re watching blood sugar, always best to pair with some protein too!

Feel free to swap the nut butter for peanut butter to give it a peanut butter flavor. Also so yum! Or tchina!

The key to a good breakfast is keeping it high protein and high fiber. Sets you up to a high energy, blood sugar balanced day. These Cottage Cheese & Cinnamon Pancakes are super easy, and help me get in my target protein on morning when i really just don’t feel like having more eggs. Made with just 5 simple ingredients, they’re packed with protein, fiber, and healthy fats to fuel your morning.

Why Cottage Cheese?

Cottage cheese is one of the most nutrient-dense dairy options, loaded with:
✅ High-quality protein – 11g per 100g to support muscle and metabolism
✅ Casein protein – A slow-digesting protein that keeps you fuller longer
✅ Calcium & B vitamins – Essential for bone health and energy production

What % Cottage Cheese?

Many people default to low-fat dairy, but full-fat (5%) cottage cheese is actually the best choice when it comes to nutrient absorption and satiety. Here’s why:
Higher in fat-soluble vitamins – Vitamins A, D, E, and K are better absorbed with fat- actually they really need fat to be absorbed.
Supports hormone balance – Healthy fats are key for optimal hormone function. Did you know that hormones are built from fat? We would literally die without fat from our diets.
Better blood sugar stability – Fat slows down digestion, preventing spikes & crashes. You all have probably heard me talk about blood sugar every time I get on the internet. But it really is the foundation to metabolic and hormonal health. Can’t be a healthy individual without blood sugar balance.

Anywho.. go give this one a try. Promise it’s yum!

Blood sugar levels dictate how we feel throughout the day. Even if you don’t struggle with insulin resistance or insulin-related diseases, stabilizing blood sugar is essential for sustained energy, focus, and overall metabolic health.

The Importance of Protein at Breakfast

There has been a growing awareness around prioritizing protein—and for good reason! Research shows that starting your day with 20-30g of protein kickstarts metabolism, activates muscle protein synthesis (which is crucial for longevity and metabolic health), and stabilizes blood sugar, mood, and energy throughout the morning.

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that consuming a high-protein breakfast can attenuate postprandial glucose responses in individuals with type 2 diabetes (PMID: 25733459). Another study in Nutrients demonstrated that a high-protein breakfast can suppress postprandial glucose levels not only after breakfast but also following subsequent meals, showing that prioritizing protein in the morning has lasting benefits throughout the day (PMID: 36678724).

This means that if you love oatmeal for its taste, digestion-friendly properties, and heart-health benefits, you should know how to build it correctly to support balanced blood sugar levels.

The Role of Fiber in Blood Sugar Balance

Another key component to consider is fiber. The recommended daily intake of fiber for adults is 25-30g, yet most people barely reach 10g per day! Aiming for 10g of fiber per meal helps support gut health, hormone regulation, immune function, nervous system balance, and overall metabolic health. This blood sugar-friendly oatmeal recipe is designed to optimize fiber intake while keeping energy levels steady.

Why This Works for Blood Sugar Balance

• Protein (from whey protein and peanut butter) prevents blood sugar spikes and supports muscle maintenance.
• Healthy fats (from peanut butter, chia seeds, and flaxseeds) slow down glucose absorption for sustained energy.
• Fiber (from oats, berries, chia, and flaxseeds) supports gut health and keeps digestion regular.

Whey Protein Recommendation

A high-quality whey protein can make all the difference in digestion and nutrient absorption. One option I recommend is Mt. Capra Clean Whey Protein because it has clean, minimal, and transparent ingredients, making it easy to digest. If this one doesn’t work for you, look for a whey protein with simple, high-quality ingredients and no unnecessary fillers.

This year my eldest daughter started gan moetza, which means I had to start sending her a sandwich every day for aruchat eser. We were never big bread eaters, and didn’t really want to get my kid who was uninterested in bread too interested in it. So figured I’d expose her to sourdough before she discovered what white bread was. Thank goodness for that because she’s obsessed. She doesn’t even care for regular bread when offered to her.

We were buying sourdough from my favorite bakery every 2 weeks just to stock up on our sourdough stash. But it really was getting pricey. So decided I’d jump on the sourdough trend. I am studying to be a nutritionist afterall.

But what’s with all the hype? Is sourdough really that much better?

Here’s some facts about sourdough you might not have known:

Sourdough Facts

• It is much more nutrient dense in micronutrients such as potassium, folate and magnesium. This is because the lactic acid buildup destroy some of the other acidic components commonly found in other bread. Without the presence of the conventional acid, these nutrients become much more available.
• A wonderful source of prebiotic. NOT probiotics, but PREbiotics. This is the fiber that feeds the good bacteria living in our guts. We have an entire ecological system of microorganisms growing in our guts. These good bacteria need to be nourished just as much as we do. Fiber is the best source for godo bacteria to feed off of. And sourdough is said to really fuel these good bugs we’ve got in our systems. This by definition also makes sourdough more easily digestible. So if you get digestive distress going on after you eat bread, you may be ok eating a pure sourdough.
• The lactic acid in the sourdough also sources a lot of antioxidants. Can’t be mad about getting more antioxidants by eating bread, can you?

Those are just some facts of many. But anectodly I will say that I was expecting my kid to be sick every other week when she started gan. Can’t pin this all on the sourdough but i really believe it is contributing to her health. She is getting a great source of prebiotics and getting a punch of nutrient richness daily. And a healthy gut is very well linked to a strong immune system. So I’ll be over here thanking the sourdough ever so slightly for her astonishing health this gan season.

What is “Discard”?

Sounds weird, I know. Part of ht sourdough process is feeding the starter every so often. But before feeding it, you need to make room for it to grow in size. The part you throw out to make room for growth is called the “discard.” The discard still has lactic acid buildup and the same benefits found in the sourdough. NEVER worth discarding! So much can be done with it!

That’s where this recipe came in. Really wanted to make my family a special lunch today. This third lockdown; been hard on everyone. So I decided to make these pancakes as an experiment. I was feeding my starter and needed something to do with the discard. The result was better than I ever expected. So fluffy! Seriously a must try!

So if you’ve got a starter on hand, definitely give these a try! NEVER DISCARD! Trust me, you’re world will be changed.

xoxo

Anything 20 minute is going to be key over the next little bit. This one is a staple in our house. It’s quick and easy, and forgiving. And even though it only takes 15 + minutes of active cooking time, the flavor is NOT lacking in the slightest. Also it gets in protein, veg, and you can basically serve it a top any grain. Can’t get better than that, especially as we are heading into the third full lockdown here in Israel.

A few notes before I get to the actual recipe. Going to keep this post short and sweet because that’s all anyone has time for these days, am I right?

1. any veggie combo goes here. You have picky kids that only eat a certain veg? add it in! If they can’t handle any veg, totally fine too! leave it out! As I mentioned, this is a really forgiving recipe.
2. I use coconut sugar for my sweetener but I realize this can get pricey. Feel free to swap with whatever sugar you have on hand: honey, maple syrup, even regular sugar will do (but shh I never said that 😉 Just swap with the same amount.
3. I happen to really like serving this with rice noodles. Really been happy with the consistency of these ones from Kerem recently. And my kids enjoy it much more this way. If you need more “sauce” action, feel free to make extra glaze in a sauce pan and serve at the side for everyone to add freely. You can also just have some soy sauce and top the noodles that way.

Think that’s it guys. Hope this one saves your last minute family dinner prep as much as it has saved me!

xoxo

AKA as the best chicken soup. You must give it a try! Not even joking, I am known as the chicken soup lady in every community I have lived in thus far. Wanna know the secret? You’ll have to keep reading for that one.

I was trying to get really creative for this one because this is my signature dish. I couldn;t figure out how to properly photgraph it because at the end of the day it looks like a pot of all the other chicken soups. But I really wanted to highlight the ingredients because there’s nothing fancy. Just chicken, meat herbs and veggies. No soup mix, no fancy spice mixes. The flavors are bursting though. Every time. And I really wanted my readers to know how special of a soup this is.

Then my Instagram friend (aren’t those the best?!) Shana Koppel came out with a Chicken Soup Recipe product. Where you can send her your family’s old time recipe for her to design graphically and gift to your bubby or any of those people who have been pestering you for the secret recipe. This idea + my chicken soup recipe -= love.

So not only will you get the recipe here. But you’ll get a printable PDF of the recipe that you can keep in your kitchen. And because chicken soup is really for the soul, I hope this recipe and PDF will get passed on and on for generations (A girl can dream, right?)

Listen. At the end of the day chicken soup is one of those recipes that you’ll never be able to make better than your bubby. But this is my little effort to give you a really really good one, that never fails. I hope you’ll try it.

Here’s the downloadable PDF version: Fresh Sabra’s Chicken Soup

But the recipe and method is also below

xoxo,

Liat

P.S. Shana if you’re reading this…thank you for making my chicken soup dreams come true! I’m in love with this poster!

I’m declaring a Soup Week here at Fresh Sabra Headquarters. This third seger actually isn’t really effecting my family logistically. Akiva and I are still working/schooling from home, and the girls have regular gan schedules. But I was meant to visit my mama in the states in a weeks time. The first time I planned on leaving my kids with Akiva. For some much needed mother daughter time. I really just wanted to see my mommy. But not gonna happen. So we’re rolling with it. And eating lots of soup.

Also because final season is approaching. Lab reports, midterms, assignments. They are all in full swing. And the only thing I have time to do is get my kids bathed and into bed before I get back at it all. So dinner prep looks more like this these days: Saturday night I chop a crap load of veggies. Throw them in Tupperwares and ziplocks. Then throw a new combination of veggies together every other night for a different type of soup. Add a prepped grain (also prepped on Motzash) or legume and we’ve got ourselves our dinners for the next foreseeable future.

Last reason. Because I have a soup recipe I have been dying to get out. It’s not out yet, but it is coming later this week. And it’s not your typical format of recipes. It’s so cool and fun, and it’s the yummiest and most comforting of all soups. Can you guess what it is?

So here we go. Fresh Sabra Soup Week has officially begun. Keep checking back for more easy peasy soup recipes throughout the week.

xoxo,

Liat

Everyone needs a good dairy cookie. Sometimes you just gotta use the butter for the goods. But This recipe has been tried and tested with ghee, and you all know how I feel about ghee. If you don’t here’s a quick recap for you:

Ghee benefits

• slightly more short chain fatty acids (namely butyric acid) than regular butter
• a great source of DHA (omega 3 fatty acids) which are known to release anti-inflammatory enzymes
• high smoke point, making it almost impossible to turn rancid as most refined oils commonly do
• it tastes just as yummy as butter without the presence of the milk solids (ie it’s lactose and casein free!)

If you don’t have ghee at home, you can totally sub the ghee for butter and the recipe is just as yummy. But if you are looking to get your hands on some ghee, there are three brands I have seen available to us Israelis. The first is sometime sold at Nitzat Haduvdevan but in my experience it’s quite pricey and you can get a better bang for your buck elsewhere. Though the quality seems to be pretty top of the game. The second is KTC brand, imported from the UK. I’ve seen it floating around the smaller health food store chains as well as at specialty cake shops like Mr. Cake. It’s slightly cheaper than the Nitzat brand. The last brand, which I’ve found to be the cheapest, is Organic Valley, but this is only available on iherb. Maybe worth checking out my iherb Essentials list and getting on that order 😉

Recipe Notes and Variations

• Flour: I have been successful with whole spelt, white spelt, and even whole wheat. Have yet to try a gluten free version so I will have to report back!
• Cocoa powder: My most favorite cocoa powder in Israel to date is Shaked Tavor. Just quality and makes the yummiest creations. Rich and so chocolatey. In my opinion, if you’re making a chocolatey dessert, this is a must. But feel free to prove me wrong and let me know which brands of cocoa powder worked for you in this recipe.
• Maple syrup: If you don’t have maple syrup on hand you can swap for date syrup or honey. In fact, the date syrup works marvelously well in the sandwich filling and gives the salted caramel a whole new depth of flavor. In a good way!
• Coconut sugar: swap for brown sugar or cane sugar 1:1
• almond butter: use any nut butter. I’ve tried with almond and cashew butter and both have turned out incredibly decedent. Peanut butter will change the flavor profile slightly, but still yummy.
• Dairy free version: you can swap any of the ghee or butter with coconut oil, but this will obviously give the cookie a coconuty flavor, so bear that in mind

That’s it peeps. This one is worth it. One last note: you’re going to find yourself wanting to double or triple the recipe because it doesn’t last too long.

We are always looking for easy non hassle chicken recipes aren’t we? My favorite recipes are the ones I can toss in a bag to avoid too many dishes. The best ones are the ones that have minimal mess. That’s how this one was invented.

I used to hate, and I mean HATE curry flavor, or any of those strong Indian spices. But I recently learned that it’s all about pairing them with the correct flavors and making them a subtle backdrop. My kids happen to love this recipe too. That’s always my indicator of keeping a recipe around.

The recipe itself is so incredibly simple. You’re going to be hooked. Also it re-heats beautifully on the plata, so it’s a wonderful Shabbat day option. But also totally yum for a midweek dinner. Pair with an Asian slaw and some taters. Mmmm can’t get better.

Hope you and your family enjoy just as much as mine.

Xoxo

Made these guys a lot over the past few weeks. I’m a fall dessert lover through and through. Any slight sign of cool weather and you’ll find me in my cozy sweater, Ugg slippers, hot bev in hand with some sort of pumpkin dessert. This is my new favorite.

I always try to test my recipes on others before posting. Because I have been into this healthy eating thing for over a decade. Don’t even have white or brown sugar or white flour in my house. So when I make a dessert I always wonder if it’s just my adapted taste buds that think it’s out of this world, or if they really are that good. Had these muffins around for Shabbat this past week. We had some close friends over for the weekend, and another couple of friends over in the afternoon. DEVOURED. Double taste check!!

Notable Ingredients

Here are some recipe notes before I dive in:

• coconut sugar can be found in every health food store in the country. I happen to really love the flavor of it because it has a little “caramel” depth to it. Kind of like a mix between regular white sugar and brown sugar if you ask me. It is extracted from the coconut palm sap and retains some of the minerals and nutrients in the palm itself. It also contains some fraction of inulin, a type of dietary fiber that can help gradually raise blood sugar levels as opposed to rapidly raise and decrease them. I won’t say that it is significantly superior to sugar. Both will still raise blood sugar levels. But I always feel better consuming unrefined sugar over a refined white sugar. The chemical processing is just not something I want to be eating regularly. So if I’m going to have a treat, I’d much prefer unrefined sugar options. But you can definitely replace the coconut sugar in the recipe with brown or regular sugar. Both will do the trick.
• Molasses: I wanted to do this recipe right. The flavor combo of molasses and pumpkin plus all the warm spices is just incredible. You can swap the molasses for date syrup though, if you need, A bit about blackstrap molasses nutritionally though: when the sugar cane undergoes its refining process, the molasses is the byproduct of the second boiling process involved. While sugar will go on to further processing, the blackstrap molasses still retains much nutritional value. It holds the lowest sugar content in comparison to all other sugar cane products. Believe it or not, many cultures view it as a superfood because of its high concentration of magnesium and calcium. 1 tbsp is said to reach almost 10% of the daily require value of each. Not telling you do go drink a cup full of molasses. It still is sugar. But at least it’s not just “pure” sugar.
• Pumpkin puree: You can definitely swap this for purees squash, or sweet potato. You can make your own by roasting chunks in A 200 degree celcius oven for 1-1.5 hours and then pureeing. Works like a charm.

Hope this recipe brings warmth to your holiday season this year. We all need a little bit of it now.

Xoxo