Category: Vegetarian

Kale Salad with Garlic Tahini Dressing

Published on by Alissa6 Comments

Lately, I can’t get enough of kale salad. It’s crunchy. It’s flavorful. It’s a party in the mouth.

This kale salad is topped with an awesome tahini dressing. The recipe is based on a salad that is featured at the Whole Foods salad bar. A friend shared their recipe with me and I have made this salad for three nights in a row now. And may or may not have licked the bowl….and dreamed about this salad….and then ate it at midnight. OK, I have a problem. I know. Don’t judge.

This salad will totally make up for the fact that I also hoovered a rack of ribs, right?

If you can, mix the kale and the dressing together and allow to sit for an hour or two before serving.

Kale Salad with Garlic Tahini Dressing

Ingredients

  • 3 cups of kale, ribs removed and torn into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon of tahini paste (sesame seed paste)
  • 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced and mashed
  • 1 teaspoon of good olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons of cilantro, chopped

Instructions

  1. Wash and remove center ribs from kale. Tear into pieces and place in a large bowl.
  2. In a small bowl, add tahini paste through olive oil. Mix until well blended.
  3. Pour dressing over kale and massage into kale. Let sit for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours.  Mix before serving. Sprinkle cilantro on top.  Eating this with an avocado on the side makes a perfect lunch.

Fruit-on-Bottom Yogurt Cups

Published on by AlissaLeave a comment

I’m a snacker. I love to snack throughout the day, eating one snack around 10am and another one around 3pm.  Snacking keeps my blood sugar in check and also keeps me from eating everything in sight once I get home.  One of my favorite snacks is yogurt!

Prepackaged yogurt cups have a lot of added sugar and preservatives. You can save money and have a tastier treat by making your own. I buy organic plain yogurt. Plain greek yogurt is also a great alternative which has over twice the protein as plain yogurt and is ultra creamy. Buying bulk plain yogurt is a lot cheaper and you can keep it on hand to use in other recipes (as an alternative to sour cream in dips, on tacos).

Fruit-on-Bottom Yogurt Cups

Ingredients

Organic plain yogurt (greek style, whole fat, or low fat)

Yogurt Option Add-ins:

  • unsweetened applesauce (add a dash of cinnamon for a kick)
  • 1/4 cup fruit (blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, peaches, whatever you have), frozen or fresh
  • 1 teaspoon no added sugar fruit preserves
  • dried fruit (cranberries, figs, apples, apricots)
  • vanilla extract
  • fresh sliced or chopped nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans, etc)

Instructions

  1. If using frozen fruit, thaw in the microwave for 15 to 30 seconds. Add fruit, preserves, or applesauce  (or combination of these ingredients) to the bottom of a container.
  2. Add 1/2 cup to 1 cup of plain yogurt. Top with a sprinkle of nuts, vanilla extract, or dried cranberries.

Curried Tomato and Sweet Potato Soup

Published on by Alissa2 Comments

It is SPRING! Hope you had a great weekend.

Happy Food Matters Monday. Today’s fabulous recipe is brought to you by the FMP project. The original recipe, Curried Tomato Soup with Hard Boiled Eggs, was chosen by Joanne of Eats Well With Others. This is a simple and delicious version of tomato soup.

Although tomatoes are definitely not in season right now, I luckily still had two mason jars of canned tomatoes in my cellar that I had canned this past summer.  You can easily substitute regular canned tomatoes.

The original recipe called for 3 cups of tomatoes, 2 potatoes, cauliflower, and hard boiled eggs.  Sorry, but the hard boiled eggs on top of a soup kind of freaked me out. If you want to give it a go, try it. I tried to poach an egg in the soup, and it turned out ok. But I probably wouldn’t do it again…but that’s just me.

My version has sweet potatoes that I had stored from the market and a mix of kale and swiss chard from my garden.  This just goes to show you how versatile this recipe, and most recipes, are. You can substitute whatever you have on hand or whatever is in season for most vegetables.

Curry powder and sweet potatoes are a match made in heaven!

Adding coconut milk gives his soup added creaminess.

I also pureed the soup using an immersion or hand blender which makes this soup ever more creamier. You can leave it chunky, if you prefer.

You could also reduce the amount of water in the recipe (use 1 cup instead of 3) and serve this over basmati rice!

Curried Tomato and Sweet Potato Soup (Adapted from Mark Bittman’s Food Matters Cookbook)

Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger)
  • 2 tablespoons of curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon honey
  • 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 1 medium carrot, diced
  • 1 cup lite coconut milk
  • 3 cups vegetable broth or water
  • 3 cups of diced tomatoes (2 cans) with juice
  • 1 bunch of kale (1 to 2 cups), ribs removed and sliced in 1 inch ribbons
  • 4 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
  • salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients:

  1. Heat coconut oil in a heavy dutch oven over medium-high heat until melted. Add onions and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Cook for an addition 1 minute or until spices become fragrant.
  2. Add diced sweet potatoes and carrot. Stir and cook for 2 minutes, coating potatoes.
  3. Add coconut milk, vegetable broth (or water), and diced tomatoes with juice. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer with lid on pot for 15 to 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
  4. Use an immersion blender (hand blender) or a regular blender (or food processor) to puree most of the soup. If using an immersion blender, place the immersion blender into the pot and puree the soup until your get the desired consistency. If you are using a regular blender, remove a few cups at a time and puree in batches. Be careful to not splatter the hot soup. Add the pureed soup back to the pot.
  5. Add kale and cook over medium-low heat for an additional 5 to 10 minutes or until kale is tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Ladle into 4 bowls. Top with chopped cilantro.

Warm Hummus Dip with Sweet Potato Chips

Published on by Alissa7 Comments

Today, I am going to share some recipes that are big money savers and healthy.  You will learn to cook dried beans, prepare a dip from those beans, and make sweet potato chips (from scratch) to transport that bean dip to your mouth.  This is, of course, Food Matters Monday and the main recipe (warm hummus) is brought to you by the Food Matters Project.

Number 1 – COOK BEANS FROM SCRATCH. Seriously. Easy and cheap. Yes, canned beans are cheap anyways, but cooking your own is cheaper, tastier, and healthier (no added salt and BPA from cans). One pound of dried beans (about 2.5 cups) will make over 6 cups of cooked beans. One pound of dried beans costs the same as one can (less than 2 cups) of beans.  Rinse and pick through 1 pound of dried beans (any variety), removing rocks and bad beans. Soak the beans overnight (at least 8 hours). Drain and rins, refilling the crockpot with the soaked beans and water (no salt) until the water is about 1 inch over the beans.  Cook in your crockpot on low all day while you are at work (8 to 10 hours).  Now, you will have a crap ton of beans. Separate the beans in freezer safe ziplock bags, placing 2 cup portions in each bag. Freeze. Pull them out when you need them in a dish, soup, or dip.

Number 2 – MAKE YOUR OWN HUMMUS. Stop buying store bought dips. Now. After you have made your own huge pot of garbanzo beans following the directions above, throw three cups of those beans, some of the cooking liquid, two heaping tablespoons of tahini (sesame paste), two tablespoons of olive oil, salt to taste, and several tablespoons of lemon juice into a food processor and whirl until smooth. Done. Hummus can be served both warm or cold. Really. Try it warm. You’ll dig it.

Hummus can be spiced a meriad of ways: roasted garlic, basil, roasted red peppers, curry powder…. I chose to separate my hummus into two dishes, adding smoked paprika to one batch and siracha garlic chili paste to the other. Following Mark Bittman’s recommendations in “Hummus Served Hot”, I warmed the paprika hummus over the stove for a new spin. I loved the creaminess that it added.

Number 3 – MAKE YOUR OWN CHIPS. I chose to do some sweet potato chips, seasoned with cumin, smoked paprika, and sea salt. So so so so addictive and delicious. They were great alone or dipped in the hummus. It is best to have a mandoline slicer to slice your vegetable about 1/8 inch thick. Also, another tip, keep the chips in a single layer on the baking sheet to keep them from getting soggy. They will crisp up much better when they are not crowded (speaking from experience).

So, branch out and try to make these things from scratch. Best treat in the world. You deserve it.

Check out Naturally Ella for the featured FMP recipe of Hummus Served Hot. Also, don’t forget to stop by the FMP website to see the other delicious spins on this recipe. Have a great Monday!

Warm Hummus Dip with Sweet Potato Chips (adapted from Mark Bittman’s The Food Matters Cookbook)

Hummus Ingredients

  • 3 cups of garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
  • 1/4 cup of reserved cooking liquid from beans (or water)
  • 2 heaping tablespoons of tahini (sesame paste)
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
  • 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon of sea salt

Hummus Instructions:

  1. Combine all ingredients in food processor. Process until smooth. Add salt to taste.
  2. Optional mix ins: Saute garlic in olive oil and add garlic-flavored olive oil. Add 1/2 tablespoon smoked paprika.

Sweet Potato Chips Ingredients:

  • 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced on a mandolin slicer 1/8 inch thick
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/8 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon of salt

Sweet Potato Chips Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
  2. Combine sliced sweet potatoes and remaining ingredients in a medium bowl. Toss until all are covered with seasonings and olive oil.
  3. Place sweet potato chips in a single layer on two nonstick baking sheets, lined with parchment paper or sprayed with nonstick spray.
  4. Place on middle and top racks. Cook for 25 minutes, rotating sheets half way through cooking process.
  5. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt, if necessary.

Seared Bean Sprout Salad with Sesame-Orange Dressing

Published on by Alissa12 Comments

What is a bean sprout? It’s the sprout from a germinated mung bean. Bean sprouts are usually used in asian cooking and provide a bright crunchy texture to a stir fry dish. I originally intended on sprouting my own mung beans (which is really easy), but I didn’t have time. It takes 5 to 7 days of soaking the mung beans in water (changing every 12 hours). But you can easily find bean sprouts at your local grocer or asian market.

Today’s recipe is brought to you by the Food Matters Project, which is a group of foodie bloggers dedicated to cooking our way through Mark Bittman’s Food Matters Cookbook. The original recipe was chosen by Dominica of Food Wine Love and was supposed to be Seared Bean Sprouts with Beef and Sesame-Orange Sauce. 

Although this looked both easy and delicious, I was on my way to a dinner party last night and needed to bring a side dish. I decided to turn the recipe into a bright and colorful salad, adding some shredded carrots, diced cucumber, and chopped cilantro. It was really easy to throw together and was definitely unique.

Check the FMP website to see what the other foodies chose to do with this recipe!

Seared Bean Sprout Salad with Sesame-Orange Dressing

Makes: 8 servings (as a side dish)

Salad Ingredients

  • 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 Tablespoon canola oil or coconut oil
  • 1 lb bean sprouts, rinsed
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 bunch of scallions, green and white parts chopped
  • 2 carrots, shredded
  • 1 cucumber, diced
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Dressing Ingredients

  • 2 oranges, juiced
  • zest of 1/2 orange
  • 1/2 Tablespoon fresh ginger, minced or grated
  • 2 Tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon tahini paste
  • 1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon honey

Instructions:

  1. Add 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds to a DRY skillet. Cook on medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, lightly toasting sesame seeds. Remove and set aside.
  2. Place 1 tablespoon of oil in skillet and heat over medium heat. When oil is hot (not smoking), toss in bean sprouts and salt. Stir fry for 3 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove and place in colander. Run cold water over sprouts to stop them from cooking. You want them to still be crips.
  3. Add the sprouts, cucumber, shredded carrot, cilantro, and scallions to a medium serving bowl.
  4. Combine all dressing ingredients into a mason jar or lidded jar. Shake well. Pour over salad and stir.  Chill until you are ready to serve it. Toss before serving and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Huevos Rancheros with Black Beans

Published on by Alissa7 Comments

I loooooove breakfast. Lazy Sunday morning breakfast dates with my husband are the best thing on earth.  Our favorite breakfast joint back in Norman was a fabulous place called Turquoise Cafe. They were fresh, inventive, and used local ingredients. Brunch items included oatmeal brûlée, amazing huevos rancheros, and blue corn migas. I’d stab someone’s eye out with a spork for those migas or huevos. Ya, you heard me. Don’t stand in front of me and a good brunch, buddy.

But alas, Turquoise is no more (sniff sniff). It closed shortly after we moved due to some unfortunate circumstances. But, I still crave that food with a vengeance.

I have yet to find any breakfast joint in KC that comes close to Turquoise. We have searched near and far, and still nothing.

I set out to try to recreate the Huevos from that restaurant and I do believe that I have it down to a science, and, in my opinion, have perfected the recipe. Huevos Rancheros (Rachers Eggs) is a basic mexican breakfast that usually consists of fried eggs, tortillas, and cooked salsa.

I like to serve my huevos over black beans. This dish is SO freaking easy and quick. On a busy night, I often will whip this up for dinner. It seriously takes less than 10 minutes to put this meal together.

All you need is eggs, tortillas, cheese, black beans, and salsa. I think cilantro is a huge bonus but not a must. Luckily, my cilantro never gave up the ghost over our lackluster winter and I was able to run out there and nab some to sprinkle on the eggs.

Heat your oven to 350F and place tortillas with a sprinkle of cheese into the oven to melt the cheese. Use whatever cheese you have on hand: cheddar, pepper jack, goat cheese, or even parmesan….seriously.

I like to add a bit of ground cumin to black beans for a good earthy flavor, but it isn’t necessary if you do not have the spice. Add a bit of salsa to your black beans and heat in the microwave while the tortillas are warming in the oven. After the cheese is melted on the tortillas, put the tortillas on oven-proof serving plates and then place a bit of black beans down the middle of each tortilla. Lower the oven temp to 200 F and place the prepared plates in the oven to keep warm while making the eggs.

Fry or scramble some huevos (eggs) to top off the dish. I like my eggs over-medium with a great runny yolk. I recommend getting local, cage-free and farm fresh eggs, if possible. They taste and look so different than traditional store-bought eggs with amazing orange yolks instead of yellow. Mmmmm…love some good orange-yoked eggs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Huevos Rancheros with Black Beans

Note: On the serving size, I usually eat one egg and one tortilla whereas my husband eats two eggs and two tortillas. So, adjust your portion size according to your crowd.

Serves 2 

Ingredients

  • 2 to 4 huevos (eggs)
  • 2 to 4 corn tortillas
  • 2 cups (1 15oz can) of black beans
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup of cheese (whatever you have on hand)
  • 1/2 cup prepared salsa
  • Toppings – cilantro, green onions, extra cheese
  • salt and fresh cracked pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 300 F. Place tortillas on a baking sheet. Spray tortillas on both sides with nonstick spray. Sprinkle a couple tablespoons of shredded cheese on each tortilla. Place in preheated oven. Once the cheese is melted (about 2 minutes), remove from oven. Reduce oven temp to 200F.
  2. Mix black beans, 1/4 cup salsa, cumin, and 1/8 teaspoon of salt in a medium microwavable bowl. Microwave (or heat on the stove in a saucepan) for about 2 minutes, or until warmed through. Stir.
  3. Place 1 to 2 cheese-topped tortillas on each serving plate. Place about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of warmed black beans down the middle of each melted cheese-topped tortilla. Set aside or place oven-proof plates in 200F oven to keep warm.
  4. Cook eggs over medium (or however you desire). Remove warmed plates from oven. Place one egg on top of black beans. Sprinkle with cilantro, green onions, and extra cheese. Serve with salsa.

Flourless Fudge Brownies with Butterscotch Chips (Gluten Free)

Published on by Alissa2 Comments

I recently realized that I have been taking something small for granted. My thumbs. Ya. Those puppies are really useful.

This past weekend, I cut myself pretty bad on the knuckle of my thumb on my left hand. My whole left hand is bandaged up with butterfly sutures and gauze. Little things like brushing my teeth, tying my running shoes, and drinking coffee have become quite challenging.

So the lesson of the story, don’t take the little things for granted.

Like black beans, for example. I know, I know, I know….weird comparison, but black beans can be used for more than savory dishes like tacos, side dishes, and salads. They are the magic and secret ingredient in my flourless brownies. Shhhhhhhh!

I swear you would NEVER know if I didn’t tell you.  I adapted this recipe from a Whole Foods recipe and swapped the chocolate chips for butterscotch chips. I also cut down the quantity of butter, adding applesauce instead to keep them moist. The consistency of these brownies is more fudge-like.

These sweet treats taste amazing and have protein and fiber. They are so good that you will want to make these to show that you do not take black beans for granted. It’s also a great dessert to serve if you have any friends that have a gluten intolerance. To make this truly gluten free, make sure you use gluten free vanilla extract and gluten free butterscotch chips. Chocolate chips can be swapped for the butterscotch chips.  But seriously folks, go grab that extra can of black beans in your pantry and whirl up a batch of these.

Flourless Fudge Brownies with Butterscotch Chips (Gluten Free) (adapted from Whole Foods Recipes)

Makes: 16 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 15oz can of black beans, rinsed and rained
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup applesauce
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 sugar (I used turbinado sugar)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray an 8X8 dish with nonstick spray and set aside.
  2. Combine black beans, butter, applesauce, cocoa powder, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Puree until smooth.
  3. Remove blade from food processor. Stir in butterscotch chips.
  4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes or until middle is set. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.

Broccoli, Fig, and Goat Cheese Pasta

Published on by Alissa7 Comments

Happy Food Matters Monday! The fourth week of the Food Matters Project brings a very interesting recipe.

I adapted this recipe from the Food Matters Cookbook. The original recipe was Baked Rigatoni with Brussel Sprouts, Figs, and Blue Cheese chosen by Marcia of Twenty by Sixty. I have to admit that I was very worried about this dish. I mean the combo of brussel sprouts, figs, AND blue cheese was just a bit on the odd side.

Number one, I’m not a fan of brussel sprouts OR blue cheese. But, I do looooove figs, both dried and fresh. A note on figs. The most popular dried fig is the black mission fig, but any variety would taste great. I used dried Conadria Figs from Trader Joes. Dried figs are also a great snack and a fabulous source of fiber.

My variation on the recipe was to use broccoli and goat cheese instead of brussel sprouts and blue cheese. Love!

This really was DELICIOUS. An inspired dinner that was perfect and spot on. The original recipe calls for baking the pasta, but I found that this dried out the pasta dish because the goat cheese ends up just soaking into the pasta instead of coating it like you would want. I personally liked it without baking it.

The other major bonus to this recipe is that you can throw it together in under 20 minutes. I cooked the broccoli in a steamer placed over the pot of boiling pasta. Double duty!

This dish just proves to me that Mark Bittman truly knows how to make food matter. If you are curious at other variations, check out the original recipe by Marcia at Twenty by Sixty and other adaptations by the rest of the FMP food blogging gang.

Broccoli, Fig, and Goat Cheese Pasta

Note: The cheese is easily swappable for what you have on hand, as long as it is easily meltable. Also instead of figs, apples or pears would also work well.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

  • 8 oz whole wheat pasta
  • 1 head of broccoli
  • 1/2 cup of dried figs, chopped
  • 1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • salt and cracked pepper
  • red pepper flakes (optional)
  • sliced roasted almonds or pine nuts (optional)

Instructions

  1. Bring pot of salted water to boil. Place pasta in boiling water. Cook for about 6 minutes. While pasta is cooking, place broccoli in a steamer basket and place over pot of boiling water. Steam for about 3 to 5 minutes or until broccoli becomes bright green. Do not overcook. Remove from steaming and run cold water over the broccoli to stop the cooking process.
  2. Drain pasta, reserving about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of pasta cooking liquid.
  3. Combine pasta, broccoli, figs, goat cheese, parmesan cheese, and olive oil back in the same pot that you cooked the pasta. Stir and cook on low heat until cheese melts, adding back pasta water as needed a tablespoon at a time. Pour into serving bowl and top with slivered toasted almonds or pine nuts.

Chocolate Banana Recovery Smoothie

Published on by Alissa3 Comments

There is something that you should know about me. I am very much a type-A personality. But I am working on it. Not that it is a bad thing…it just gets in the way of having fun sometimes. Once I decide on a goal, I’m like a rabid and starving dog…I latch onto it and DO NOT LET GO until I have done it. It’s like the old “hand shake” agreement that I have with my brain. It’s a sick sick sick disease that I have.

For example, a few years back I started running. I had never been a runner. When I think of runners, images of long legged and tall women and men come to my mind. Not me…short and squatty.  I’m short…very short. I lie when I say that I’m 5’3″ on my driver’s license. But I had a goal…I was going to start running. I had previously jogged here and there. I’d even ran a 5k several years before. But I had never kept with it. I was too busy, I thought. Too busy to take just 30 minutes out of my day.

So in an attempt to meet my goal and to shed some of the 10+ grad school pounds that I picked up, I began running. Beginning in January, I couldn’t run a mile. And then I ran two….and then, by April, I ran 6 miles in a relay.

Well, if I could go 6…I could go 13, right? Goal set. I ran a half marathon by June.

Then my head immediately says…”If you can do 13….you can do a full marathon”. Goal set.

My body choked, I got a hip fracture…but by October, I pushed through and finished a marathon, with a hip fracture. 26.2 miles. And yes, those last 0.2 miles are important. Did I mention I’m Type-A? And crazy. I mentioned I was crazy, right? And stupid. But I had a goal, right? Crazy.

Needless to say, I think I have learned my lesson…with running at least. I’m not advocating, at all, my quick way to marathoning. Really, you should be running for over a year before attempting one or even a half marathon at that. And then you probably won’t fracture your hip, like I did. stupid. I mentioned I was crazy, right?

Anyways, I do learn from my mistakes.

Who knows if I will ever run another marathon again, but I’ve been an avid runner now for over 3 years.  I’m addicted. I love the feeling of running in the spring. It’s my “me” time. I now know that you have to eat right to get to where you want to be. During that whole experience, I crashed and burned a lot, but I also learned that meals and snacks are the fuel for the next event.

I still do long runs on weekends, about 6 to 10 miles, depending on the weather. After a long run, bike ride, or even a hard workout (over 45 minutes), it is super important to get protein and carbs back into for body to refuel for the day and for your next run, ride, or workout. Low fat chocolate milk is perfect for this refueling. It has good carbs and plenty of protein (3 to 1 ratio). Usually, I buy the vacuum packed organic chocolate milk that is in simple individual servings. I can take them with me when I travel and they are a perfect single serving.

However, if I am at home, I make my own recovery drink which is a chocolate banana smoothie. I always keep sliced frozen bananas in the freezer because I always have those few bananas that are going bad at the end of the week. Slicing them up and storing them in the freezer is perfect to grab later for smoothies or to defrost and use in breads.

So here is the quick and simple smoothie. In a blender, throw some sliced frozen bananas with a cup of milk and a few teaspoons of dutch unprocessed cocoa powder (Mmmmm antioxidants!). Done. Blend. Drink.

Tastes like a milk shake.  Now that’s fun. I told you I was working on having fun. And even if you don’t do long runs, this is a great healthy start to your day or even as a dessert at night.

Chocolate Banana Recovery Smoothie

Makes: 1 serving

Ingredients

  • 1/2 to 1 cup sliced frozen bananas
  • 3/4 to 1 cup milk
  • 2 teaspoons dutch-processed cocoa

Instructions

  1. Place cocoa in a small bowl with 2 tablespoons of milk or water. Mix milk and cocoa powder to make a chocolate paste.
  2. Add frozen sliced bananas, milk, and chocolate paste to a blender or the cup of an immersion blender.
  3. Blend.
  4. Drink.
  5. Enjoy.

Cheesy Cauliflower and Shells Casserole

Published on by Alissa6 Comments

I have a weakness with melted cheese. I’d eat melted cheese on paper. That might not be the best thing to tell you when I try to sell this latest cheesy casserole adventure to you, because it tastes awesome…and I swear there is no paper in it, just cauliflower.

In college, I used to eat way too much of the boxed variety of mac and cheese. Bleh…and the homemade variety is usually so laden with a literal ton of cheese, that my heart hurts for days. So, I had pretty much sworn away from the dish, until this weekend.  

Although I am a big fan of sneaking veggies into dishes at all times, I have never been a big cauliflower lover (Ear muffs, Mr Cauliflower). I don’t know, maybe I’m not drawn to it at the market because it is all white and always outshined by the bright orange sweet potatoes, the deep green kale, kaleidoscope orange and red and yellow chard, or the brilliant purple and white striped eggplants. 

But now I feel bad that I have left the poor cauliflower out of my vegetable obsessions…merely because it lacks color.

So I decided to include the often forgotten cauliflower in a cheesy mac and cheese dish inspired by recipes from Vegetarian Times and Runner’s World. Like all things american…if you don’t like it, simply smother it in either butter or cheese. Voila!  But honestly folks, that isn’t the intention with this healthy dish.

Cauliflower doesn’t get mushy like broccolie and adds a good firm contrast to the gooey cheese and soft noodles. You could leave the noodles out and make just a cauliflower gratin, if you wanted.  The cheese sauce is basically a bechemel sauce (butter, flour, and milk) with raw milk sharp cheddar and parmesan added. The key ingredient for me in this whole dish is smoked paprika (not plain or sweet hungarian paprika…smoked).  You can find it in most grocer stores or speacialty shops. The smokiness adds a great layer of flavor without adding bacon (gasp, i know).

Cheesy Cauliflower and Shells Casserole

Quantity: 4 to 6 servings 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of dried whole wheat shell pasta
  • 1 head of cauliflower (4 cups)
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons white whole wheat flour (or all purpose)
  • 1 cup of milk
  • 1/2 cup reserved water from cooking the cauliflower or the pasta
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar
  • 1/4 cup shredded parmesan
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
  • 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray an 8X8 pyrex with nonstick spray. Set aside.
  2. Cook pasta in medium pot according to package directions. Reserving 1/2 cup of liquid.
  3. Steam cauliflower for 5 to 7 minutes. Cauliflower should be cooked, but firm and not mushy.
  4. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Once butter is melted, whisk in flour, stirring constantly. Cook on medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in milk and reserved cooking liquid. Cook over medium heat for 7 to 10 minutes until thickened, stirring frequently to keep from burning.
  5. Remove sauce pan from heat. Stir in cheese, dijon mustard, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Once cheese is melted, stir in beaten egg yolk.
  6. Toss steamed cauliflower and cooked pasta with cheese sauce.
  7. Pour cheesy cauliflower and pasta into sprayed 8X8 pan. Carefully place in oven.
  8. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until top is lightly browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with smoked paprika.