Is anyone still reading this little blog???  Things have gotten just a tad crazy around here.  To be perfectly honest, I have taken on quite a bit lately.  It’s all good – some things I am beyond excited about!  But its all still a lot going on nonetheless.

I felt the need to address something though.

This…

these have been in the house for months…..why are they calling to me now??!?

And this….

these little buggers are supposed to be for decorating the birthday cake and cupcakes!

And then this….

ugh, nothing like homemade buttercream frosting!

….they have all been a part of what has gotten between me and my blogging lately.

In all of the chaos and stress, I have turned to sugar for comfort….and lots of it!  Not exactly blog-worthy food!!!  This has caught me a little off guard because I don’t normally have a big sweet tooth.  You don’t see a lot of sweets and desserts posted on my blog for a reason – I am just not really a dessert person and always leave that dish up to someone else when I’m hosting an event.  I don’t crave sweets after dinner most nights and have never been one to keep ice cream and candy in our cupboards.

But somehow these things have found their way into our house and I totally fell victim to them.  I felt the need to address this because I don’t want to come across as some clean eating nutrition goddess who eats perfectly all of the time (that is half-joking but you know what I mean!).  It happens to all of us and I just want to be perfectly clear that it happens to me too.

I think my only saving grace has been a decent amount of regular exercise!  The weather has finally been nice so I’ve been taking Bodhi for longer walks on the trails by the beach.  I’ve been in the yoga studio a couple of times a week and fairly consistent with my 5K training program for the Girls on the Run team that I’m coaching.  I’ve also been trying to get out on the paddleboard here and there.  Its nothing intense, but its a little something every day.

But that doesn’t make it all better.  As a good friend recently reminded me, its important to remember to take care of myself, even during this busy season of life.  This means taking time to shop for healthy groceries to have in the house, making healthy dinners at home for myself and my family, drinking more water (and less wine!), getting to bed A LOT earlier, and having some down time….all adding up so that I’m not turning to sugar for a pick-me-up to keep me going during these crazy days.  Seeing it all in writing somehow helps it feel like a comittment to me.

I feel better now that that is off my chest   This weekend will be busy – a good kind of busy – having friends over to celebrate Hailey’s 9th birthday with a “Cupcake Wars” party, enjoying time with our moms on Sunday, and soaking in all of this beautiful life that we have been blessed with.  Then I promise I’ll be back with a new healthy, family-friendly recipe for you next week!

I apologize for my long blogging breaks lately.  School, travelling, and family are all keeping me on my toes!

I traveled down to North Carolina for some yoga training last week, which was a really exciting experience.  More to come on that soon!  Whenever I’m away from home for an extended amount of time, I definitely miss my green smoothies and juices.  I have been having at least one a day since getting home and keeping them pretty heavy on the veggies.  I’ve pretty much been sticking to my classic green smoothie made with tons of kale, romaine, cucumber, apple, clementine, 1/2 of a banana, and lots of fresh squeezed lemon.

I have also discovered a new favorite chia pudding.  This combination of strawberry, lemon, and ginger was a perfect complement to the sunny warm weather we’ve been having the past couple of days.

To make this, combine 1 cup of almond milk, 6 fresh organic strawberries, 1/3 cup of chia seeds, 1 T honey, 1/2 inch long slice of ginger (you may want to finely chop it up if you’re not using a high powered blender such as a VitaMix), and the juice from 1/4 of a lemon.  Blend on high until mixture is smooth.

I left it in the refrigerator to thicken for about an hour and topped it off with fresh strawberries and some lemon zest. I could eat this for dessert – honestly, it was that good!  I’m thinking I might have to experiment with this flavor combination somewhere else….maybe some muffins?

Lots of salads for lunch this week.  This one was lots of organic romaine topped with cherry tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, red pepper, lightly toasted sunflower seeds, avocado and feta cheese.  Since I went a little heavy on the avocado, I just topped it with some good quality balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

For dinner, I ventured out and tried something a little new for me.  It does not come naturally for me to incorporate bacon into a recipe, but I’ve been doing a lot of research on the Weston A. Price foundation and their philosophy on nourishing foods.  I guess I can find some common ground in that they strongly believe in eating all high quality, real foods, with very little wheat/grains and processed food.  I am trying to stay open to some more animal fat and protein in my diet as long as it comes from good sources.

This recipe from Detoxinista stood out to me because it is kind of a makeover of a standard make-ahead breakfast casserole, which we love around here.

I loved the idea of replacing the hash brown potatoes with more nutrient dense spaghetti squash – kind of genius if you ask me!  The baked squash was combined with some local, free range eggs I’ve been picking up from our health food store, nitrate-free uncured bacon, sauteed onions, and some Swiss cheese.  It was a great combination of flavors.

I baked the squash up earlier in the day and then it came together pretty quickly at dinner time.

I think this would go great with salad (a classic brunch combination) but the kids requested fruit “just in case they didn’t like it”.

Hailey gave it a thumbs up and ate 2 pieces.  Jake thought it was OK and mostly picked out the bacon and ate his fruit.  I was afraid it was going to be really rich and too heavy for me, but surprisingly the squash kept it pretty light.  I would definitely make this again.

Bacon Swiss Egg Casserole

Adapted from this recipe

Ingredients

2 cups cooked spaghetti squash

8 oz. uncured, nitrate free bacon – cut into 1/2″ pieces

1 yellow onion, chopped

5 eggs

4 oz. Swiss cheese, shredded (Gruyere would be fabulous here but it was a little pricey at our store)

1 tsp salt (sea salt or kosher)

fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

To cook the spaghetti squash, carefully slice squash in half.  Scoop seeds out with a spoon.  Place squash face down on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake at 400 degrees for 40-50 minutes, depending on the size of the squash.  The squash should shred into spaghetti-like strands easily and be tender but not mushy.  This can be done up to 24 hours in advance.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and 8 X 8 baking dish with olive oil or butter.

Heat a large skillet to medium heat and saute the chopped bacon pieces for about 5 minutes.  Add in chopped onion and cook bacon and onion together until onion is tender and bacon is crispy, about 10 minutes.

Remove the bacon and onion to a mixing bowl and add in eggs, spaghetti squash, 1/2 of the cheese, salt and pepper.

Transfer mixture to greased baking dish and top with remaining shredded cheese.

Bake for 35-40 minutes until center is firm and top is golden brown.  Allow dish to set for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

I apologize for the lack in blog posts, recipes, and What I Ate Wednesday last week!

I attempted my first “cleanse” last week.  I went to a 2-hour yoga workshop last weekend and the studio was promoting a week-long cleanse program which had me a little intrigued.

“Ignite the Fire” with Mimi Ray at Lakeshore Yoga Studio

Working with partners (I’m in aqua on the right)

I had already given some thought to cleansing and detoxing since I will have to take an entire class devoted to the subject for my holistic nutrition program at Nutrition Therapy Institute (its part of the second year of classes).  And I had always been curious how I would feel after a week without caffeine, sugar, wheat, dairy, etc.  The people at the yoga studio were really pushing the idea that we’d feel GREAT.  But I was a little skeptical, since I’d also heard that there were side effects as all of the toxins work their way out of your body.  I also wanted to try it out since I have been wondering for quite some time now if I have some sensitivities to wheat and/or dairy based on how I feel after eating them.

I didn’t sign up for the formal program at the yoga studio since I have a pretty good idea of what a detox involves from my own research and have an arsenal of clean-eating detox-friendly recipes.  Their timing also didn’t work well for me since I’ll be travelling for a few days this week which is when their program is going on.  It worked better for me to do my cleanse last week, starting on Sunday (which was the 2-hour yoga workshop) and going through Friday afternoon.  Also, I have such strong feelings about food that I knew I would end up modifying some part of their program anyway.

I didn’t have any hard and fast rules but the general outline of my cleanse was:

• no wheat/gluten
• no dairy or meat
• no sugar (even natural sugars like honey, maple syrup, etc.)
• no caffeine or alcohol (or soda but I don’t drink that anyway)
• started every morning off with a mug of warm water with juice from 1/2 of a lemon
• included detoxing activities such as yoga and dry brushing (dry brushing is just an all-over exfoliation that helps the skin, your body’s largest organ, rid itself of toxins).  I was hoping to get to a gym with a sauna to sweat out more toxins but it just didn’t happen.  I think my workouts took care of that anyway!

Some of my meals included:

Smoothies (breakfast, lunch or snack)

Smoothie with beet, carrot, apple, 1/2 red grapefruit, fresh ginger, lemon

Super Detox Smoothie with dandelion greens, wild blueberries, 1/2 orange, 1/2 banana, and juice from 1/2 lime

Green Smoothie made with kale, cucumber, clementine, pineapple, ginger and parsley

As a side note, I decided to stick with smoothies instead of juices, to be careful of the sugars I was ingesting.  I liked the idea of keeping the fiber in there to slow the absorption of nutrients, keep the blood sugar from spiking, and keep me fuller longer.  Some detoxes are purely juicing, and I don’t feel that this is the right thing for me.  I’ve had problems with my blood sugar levels in the past and I also don’t deal well with feeling hungry.  I also wanted my kids to see me eating and not just drinking juice all day.

Chia Puddings (morning snack)

Chia Pudding with mango, blueberries, and walnuts

Had this one quite a few times lately! Chia pudding layered with strawberries, blueberries, and bananas. SO good!

Salads (lunch or dinner)

Romaine with carrots, red onion, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and tahini + olive oil + lemon dressing

Massaged kale salad with avocado & lemon, topped with carrots, red onion, cucumber, and toasted walnuts

Soups (lunch or dinner)

Carrot Ginger Soup (also had sweet potatoes and coconut milk)

Miso Soup – homemade vegetable broth (made with veggie scraps overnight in the crockpot), miso and grated raw garlic

Dinners (slight variations from what I served the family for dinner)

Baked organic corn tortilla with beans and sauteed peppers/onions/zucchini topped with lettuce, tomatoes, black olives, and cashew “cheeze” sauce served with guacamole on the side

Zucchini “noodles” lightly sauteed and topped with avocado/garlic/lemon/basil sauce. Served with mixed green salad.

Snacks

Apple with Raw Almond Butter

Mary’s Gone Crackers brand Gluten Free Crackers topped with mashed avocado

Celery and Carrot Sticks with Avocado White Bean Dip

Lemon Larabars (raw bars made with only nuts, dates, and dried fruit)

Leftover smoothies

Clementines

Trail Mix with raw pecans, almonds, cashews, pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds) and raw unsweetened coconut flakes

My Thoughts

In general, I was surprised at how well I was able to stick to it.  I guess if you’re truly determined and genuinely want to do something (versus being forced to eat a certain way) then its a little easier to stick with it.  I did have a couple of situations come up and just tried to go with the flow the best that I could.  There was one social opportunity where I didn’t feel like justifying or explaining my detox so I ordered a glass of red wine.  I was feeling the effects halfway through the glass!!!  I didn’t even end up finishing it!  The next was a rare opportunity for a mid-day lunch date with my hubby.  I had a salad with roasted beets and a little bit of goat cheese.  I was not about to make myself miserable or feel totally cheated by this cleansing experiment.  This is probably not in line with a true yoga type cleanse, but I was still more aware of my feelings (physical and mental) than I usually would have been in these situations, which is one of the goals of cleansing.

By the second day, I was feeling some serious detox effects.  Even though I don’t drink much coffee/caffeine, I definitely had a headache!  And this  lasted for 2-3 days!!!!!!  The best way to describe how I was feeling was like a cold coming on.  It was very strange.  But I just kept chugging tons of water and doing my yoga and tried to get plenty of sleep at night.  I think by the 3rd or 4th night, I kind of hit a breaking point with the headache, sick, weak kind of feeling and made myself some oatmeal and a green smoothie for dinner to feel like I had something with some substance to it.  I don’t know if that did the trick or if I finally got through the detox symptoms, but I felt better by the next day.

I didn’t have a strong plan for coming out of the detox.  I just knew I’d stick with the same plan for the day on Friday and then just ease back into normal eating since we usually go out to eat on Friday nights.  Well, we ended up staying home and all of a sudden, it was like I was craving every food I hadn’t eaten all week – salty snacks, creamy cheesy food, sweets – you name it, I wanted it all!  It was really frustrating and disappointing!!!!  It may have just been mental since in my mind I knew I was “done” but I didn’t really have a plan so that next meal was wide open.  I think my takeaway from this is that I’m really happy with the amount of healthy foods that I eat every day and feel OK with balancing that out with a splurge every once in a while – whether its homemade pizza or pasta for dinner, a glass of wine, a little dark chocolate, some goat cheese on a salad, or a meal eaten out at a restaurant.  I would rather mix a little of that stuff in here and there throughout the week than be craving it all in one sitting.

Once I got through the “blah” detoxing symptoms, I did actually feel really good for a day or two (before I started eating normal foods again).  The two things that I noticed that upsets my system the most are wheat and sugar.  Wheat (like our whole wheat pasta or traditional breads/tortillas) make me feel really heavy and bloated and sugar gives me the most intense headache.  The Ezekiel sprouted grain bread seems fine though.  Definitely something to think about for the future.

One thing that I think REALLY helped me stay focused during the week was the yoga.  I think I may be addicted  I am not sure if its the holistic aspect of my nutrition studies or just this time in my life, but I am connecting to yoga now more than ever before.  It just makes sense and I am enjoying it so much more than I ever did before.  I used to do it just because “its supposed to be good for you”.  Now I do it because I truly LOVE it.  I’ve been practicing at the studio 3 times a week and at home on the other days.  Since this post is already a little long and full of info-overload, I’ll write about my yoga practice and other new workouts in another post.

It will be really interesting to go through NTI’s detox program.  I am not sure if it is more of a traditional juice cleanse or an elimination diet similar to what I did (eliminating the most common food allergens and toxins).  I do think that its a great experience to have since this is something that I will need to be able to help clients with.

So, I’m curious…..have any of my readers ever attempted a cleanse or detox?  What kind?  What was your experience?  Any other questions I didn’t cover here – do you want to know more?  I’d love to hear from you…..even if its just that you missed me 😉

Happy Wednesday!  Here is a rundown of all that I had to eat today.

I wanted something kind of fun for breakfast since it was so dark, wet and dreary this morning so I made a chia pudding and fruit parfait.

I made some strawberry chia pudding yesterday by blending 1 cup of almond milk with 6 strawberries until it was pureed smooth.  Then I mixed it with 1/3 cup of chia seeds in a bowl and left it covered in the refrigerator to thicken.  I ate half of the chia pudding yesterday and used half of it today to make this parfait.

It was layered with sliced bananas, blueberries, sliced strawberries, and some unsweetened coconut.  I was surprised at how filling this was!!  Must be all of the fiber from the chia seeds and berries!!!

Later in the morning, I decided that I wanted to try out some new muffins to pack in the kids lunches.  Of course I had to sample a little bit of each flavor – lemon blueberry and strawberry basil.  They were pretty good but need a little tweaking before I post the recipe.  I am testing how low I can go with the sweetener (honey) and I think this might be a little too low

For lunch, I made a chopped salad with romaine, roasted asparagus, kalamata olives, chopped cucumber, grilled chicken, cherry tomatoes, hardboiled egg, avocado, and red onion, with a simple balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing.

I have gotten into a bad habit of snacking while making dinner – so tonight I tried to combat that by eating some clementines while cooking.

Dinner was my version of Thai Peanut Noodles with chicken, red pepper, carrots, and peapods.

I debated whether or not to do a full post on this recipe.  Its really good and pretty kid-friendly, especially when served with fun chopsticks!

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken and Veggies

Stir Fry Ingredients

1-2 chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1-2 whole carrots, peeled and chopped into small strips

red pepper, sliced into thin strips

1-2 handfuls of peapods (I cut these thin too so that everything cooks quickly)

coconut oil

soy sauce

Peanut Sauce Ingredients

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth

3 T. natural (unsweetened peanut butter)

3 T. soy sauce (or organic shoyu)

2 T. honey

1 tsp. Sriracha hot sauce

1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger

2 small cloves of garlic, finely minced

juice of 1/2 lime

Other Ingredients

8 oz. Noodles (brown rice noodles, udon noodles,  Buckwheat Soba noodles, or whole wheat spaghetti)

Chopped cilantro, green onion, chopped peanuts, lime wedges for serving – all optional

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to boil.

In a saucepan over low heat, whisk together 1/2 cup vegetable broth, 3 T. natural peanut butter, 3 T. soy sauce, 2 T. honey, 1 tsp. Sriracha hot sauce, 1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger, 2 small cloves minced garlic, and juice from 1/2 of a lime.  When the mixture is smooth and starting to thicken and bubble, remove from heat and set aside.

In the boiling water, cook 8 oz. of noodles according to package directions.  I generally use fettuccine style brown rice or Buckwheat Soba noodles, which are readily available at the most grocery stores and are gluten free.  They have a great taste and texture.

While noodles are cooking, saute thin strips of chicken in coconut oil with a little soy sauce (I have started using organic shoyu sauce to avoid GMO soy – it has the exact same flavor and our regular grocery store carries it right by the soy sauce).  Set chicken aside and saute thin strips of carrots, red pepper and peapods in some coconut oil for a couple of minutes until tender crisp (about 5 minutes or less).

When pasta is finished cooking and drained, place it back into the pot and combine noodles, sauce, chicken, and veggies.  Serve with desired toppings – chopped cilantro, chopped peanuts, sliced green onion, lime wedges, etc.

In some ways, its good to be home.  I love sleeping in my own bed.  I missed my sweet dog.  And I don’t know that I could handle another day with all 3 meals eaten in a restaurant!  Don’t get me wrong…every single meal we had was absolutely amazing!  But it just gets to be a little much after awhile, especially when my only workout was walking on the beach

But I am definitely missing the sunshine, bright colors, and awesome Mexican food that we had while we were there.  So I attempted to incorporate those three things into today’s lunch!  A super colorful, light and bright lunch with Mexican-inspired flavors like lime, cilantro, and chipotle.  SO good!!!!

I know I was just saying that I try not to go overboard with the quinoa dishes, but this just totally hit the spot today.  I cooked 1 cup of quinoa for about 15-20 minutes until it was perfectly fluffy and put it into a bowl to cool while I chopped up the veggies and made the dressing.

Quite a bit of chopping going on here – 2 roma tomatoes, 1/2 of a red onion, 1 small avocado, 1 jalapeno (no seeds), 1/2 of a yellow pepper, and 1/2 of a red pepper.

I wanted the dressing to be a little thicker so I made it in the blender similar to how I make my balsamic vinaigrette.  By pouring the oil in slowly while the blender is running, it emulsifies into a nice thick dressing.  But this is optional as the dressing could just as easily be whisked in a bowl. The dressing is a combination of fresh lime juice, garlic, a canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, kosher salt and extra virgin olive oil.

Mix in chopped veggies and a can of rinsed and drained black beans.  Then, top with a handful of fresh chopped cilantro.  Mix thoroughly to combine all ingredients.

Now all I need is a margarita, a palm tree, and some ocean waves!!!

Southwestern Black Bean and Quinoa Salad

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well and cooked according to package

2 roma tomatoes, diced

1/2 red onion, diced

1 small avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced

1/2 yellow pepper, diced

1/2 red pepper, diced

1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, finely diced

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed well

1/4-1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

For Dressing

1/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice (about 3 limes for me)

1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (I chose a smaller one and sliced it open to remove the seeds and lessen the heat), finely chopped plus 1 tsp. of adobo sauce from can

3 small cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp kosher or sea salt

1/4 extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Rinse quinoa well to remove the bitter coating and cook it according to directions on package, about 15 minutes covered over low heat, plus additional time to steam until it is perfectly cooked and fluffy.  Place quinoa into a bowl to cool.

Chop all veggies and rinse black beans.

Make dressing either by whisking to combine in a bowl or in a blender.  If using blender, add lime juice, garlic, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and salt and blend on medium to medium high speed until combined.  Reduce blender speed to low and slowly drizzle olive oil in through center cap.

Pour dressing over quinoa and toss to coat.  Add chopped veggies and black beans and mix thoroughly.  Add fresh cilantro and mix again.  Individual servings may be topped with an extra squeeze of lime, if desired.

We are having such a great time exploring California on Spring Break! We started off in San Francisco where we stayed in the Fisherman’s Wharf area. We rode cable cars, ate in Chinatown, walked down Lombard Street, saw the sea lions at Pier 39, sampled some local Dungeness crab, went to an Easter parade on Union Street, and finished off our time there with hot fudge sundaes in Ghirardelli Square.

Then we spent a day touring LA including a ride down Rodeo Drive, pictures of the Hollywood sign, lunch at 25 Degrees on Hollywood Blvd, and a visit to Madame Tusseauds Wax Museum.

We’re ending the trip with a few days in Carlsbad, a cute little surf town outside of San Diego. We took the kids to Legoland and we’ll be spending the rest of our days here relaxing on the beach.

Each of the cities have been so different, but the one thing they all share is amazing food!!! I can’t even begin to describe the amazing fresh fruit, local seafood, and ethnic food we’ve enjoyed here! I especially love that avocado comes on just about everything!!

This morning, we walked down to the Daily News Cafe for breakfast.

They’re known for their homemade sticky buns and cinnamon rolls so we ordered one of each for everyone to share.

I had a California omelette with tomato and avocado, an English muffin and fresh fruit.

When we got back to the hotel, I had some coffee out on the balcony while watching the dolphins.

The kids played in the pool most of the morning.  I was able to get away for a little bit for a walk along the beach.  The houses here are to die for!

For lunch, we sat outside at a new(er) restaurant called 83 Degrees in Carlsbad Village. I had an all organic salad with arugula, roasted chioggia beets, goat cheese, walnuts, and balsamic vinaigrette.

After that, we went over to check out the local farmers market. I am beyond jealous of the seafood and organic produce!!!!! Lobster tails were 10 for $20 and most organic produce was $2-3/container.  We bought some organic strawberries and a specialty tea, and sampled a keg of fresh brewed kombucha and different varieties of citrus fruits.

We love Mexican food so its no surprise that we’ve been indulging as much as we can while we’re in southern California!!!  Tonight for dinner, we went to Norte, just a short walk from the hotel, and sat out on the patio by the fire.  Other than a little “island style” slow service, the food was really good!  I had a margarita and the grilled mahi mahi tacos.

I’m so glad that we have a couple more days here before we have to head back home.  We’re loving the sunshine, salty ocean air, great food, and fun little beach town atmosphere!

The weeks are flying by! I can’t believe I’m posting my 11th What-I-Ate-Wednesday!

I took my breakfast in the car with me this morning. I wasn’t very hungry but knew I’d regret it if I didn’t at least bring something. I made Ezekiel sprouted grain raisin toast with raw almond butter and an apple.

I was out running errands today getting ready for our Spring Break trip and went waaaaaaay too long without something to eat. Luckily, trying on white skinny jeans kept me from ripping open a giant bag of Easter candy in the middle of Target!!!!

The second I got home, I started reheating some leftover homemade tomato basil soup (similar to my Simple Tomato Soup with a Twist but without all of the extra veggies and just using fresh basil to season it) and throwing together a Greek salad with this dressing that I always have on hand. I had planned to throw a few crushed whole grain pita chips into the salad but ended up eating them while I was making everything.

Then it was off to get the kids from school. I realized when I got home from Hailey’s gymnastics class that it was just going to be me and the kids for dinner tonight. I may have indulged in a glass of red wine and some of the cheddar bunnies the kids were eating while I figured out what to do for dinner We ended up going with an all time favorite – Breakfast For Dinner. I had scrambled eggs with some chopped kale and blueberries on the side. Other than chopping the kale, the kids made these eggs totally on their own. They don’t like kale in theirs but were willing to taste mine. I’m all about getting them more involved in the cooking as much as I can!!!!

I should know this by now, but I have to make it a priority to pack more snacks for busy days like this!!!!

Since this is going to be a pretty busy week getting ready for Spring Break, I thought I would make up some of these Broccoli, Kale & Cheddar Quinoa cups to have on hand throughout the week.  They are a great to reheat as a grab-and-go breakfast or sometimes I even eat them as lunch or dinner paired up with some fruit or salad!

Becoming very popular recently, quinoa (pronounced “keen-wah”), is a grain-like superfood grown in the Andes since the time of the Incan Empire.  Although it is often confused with being a whole grain, it is actually a seed.  It is gluten free, easy to digest, and a great source of complete protein since it contains all of the amino acids.  It is readily available in most supermarkets and is usually sold near the rice.

While I love using quinoa to make these egg-based “muffins” and as the base of a mediterranean quinoa and veggie salad in the summer, I have tried to be cautious not to over-use quinoa.  Unfortunately demand has risen so much in recent years that the crop is no longer affordable for the native Andeans who have enjoyed it as a staple of their diet for thousands of years.  Furthermore, the rising demand for more and more of the crop is also destroying their land.  Therefore I enjoy it in moderation and try to vary the color and variety of quinoa that I buy.

To cook quinoa, rinse it thoroughly to remove the bitter tasting coating.  After that it cooks up much like rice, in a 2-to-1 ratio with 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa for approximately 15 minutes.  After it cooks for 15 minutes, I like to leave the lid on to steam a little longer until it is perfectly cooked and fluffy.

To make these quinoa cups, I cooked up 1 cup of quinoa and will have quite a bit leftover to have as our dinner later this week with some of the Slow Cooker Jamaican Jerk Pork and Caribbean Salsa that I froze a few weeks ago (we will reheat the frozen meat and will make fresh salsa).

In a large bowl, mix 1 cup of the cooked quinoa, 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup chopped broccoli, 1 large handful finely chopped kale, 4 eggs, 1/2 tsp sea salt, and some freshly ground black pepper.

Lightly oil a muffin pan.  I recently bought some really nice Organic Valley pastured (grass-fed) butter that is naturally high in healthy CLA’s (conjugated linoleic acid, a healthy fatty acid), so I melted a little of that and brushed the insides of the muffin pan.  Fill 8 of the muffin cups so that they are about 3/4 full.

Bake at 350 degrees for 22-24 minutes until egg is set and edges are a light golden brown.

Enjoy 2-3 of these alongside some fresh fruit or salad for a filling meal packed with protein and high quality carbohydrates.

Broccoli, Kale & Cheddar Quinoa Cups

Ingredients

1 cup cooked quinoa

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

4 eggs

generous 1/2 cup finely chopped broccoli

generous handful of kale, finely chopped

1/2 tsp sea salt or kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

olive oil or butter for brushing muffin pan

Directions

Cook quinoa according to directions on package.  In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 cup cooked quinoa, chopped broccoli, finely chopped kale, shredded cheese, salt and pepper.  Lightly brush insides of muffin tin with oil or butter.  Divide mixture into 8 of the muffin wells filling each 3/4 full.  Bake for 22-24 minutes until eggs are set and edges are light golden brown.

For a serving size of 2 Broccoli, Kale & Cheddar Quinoa Cups, the nutritional information is as follows:

• 250 calories
• 14 grams of fat
• 18 grams carbohydrates
• 2 grams of fiber
• 14 grams of protein
• 66% of Vitamin A
• 50% of Vitamin C
• 15% of Calcium

Happy Wednesday and first day of Spring!

Between sports, Spring Break, birthdays, and end-of-school-year activities, this time of year always seems to get a bit hectic for us. Looking back over all that I ate today, I think its a pretty good example of eating well even when your days are busy.

I was rushing to get out the door with the kids this morning and literally threw a handful of things into the blender to get a smoothie into my to-go cup and grabbed 2 of these little oatmeal bundles to go with it. Quick, yummy, healthy, and totally kept me full all morning!

The smoothie was 1/2 of a frozen banana, 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, a big handful of spinach, 1 T. flax seeds, 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder, and 1 T. ground almond meal (a spoonful of any nut butter would work here). The oat bundles are still a work in progress. They are made with mashed banana, oats, maple syrup, shredded coconut, orange zest, and dried cranberries. But as you can probably tell from the picture, they’re a bit dry so I need to work out the kinks in that recipe before I post it!

After a marathon morning of running errands, I came home and munched on a handful of gluten-free crackers and hummus while I threw lunch together.

The kale salad came together quickly since I had some pre-washed, chopped kale in the refrigerator. In a small bowl, I mashed up 1/4 of an avocado with a big squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of kosher salt and massaged it into a huge bowl of kale. It was topped with chopped carrots, cucumbers, dried cranberries, and toasted walnuts – served with an orange on the side.  I love this lunch because it is filling without weighing you down.

Before I took off for my after-school shuttle run, I threw some chicken into a quick marinade of equal parts fresh lime juice and olive oil with a couple of teaspoons of homemade taco seasoning.  Darren filled in as the dinner chef tonight so he cooked up the marinated chicken, and also sauteed a big pan of sliced onions and bell peppers with a splash of lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to make homemade fajitas. We also reheated some of the Slow Cooker Black Beans that I had de-frosted from the freezer and seasoned them with a little taco seasoning.  The kids fajitas are a little more simple than this and consist mostly of cheese, but we’re working up to more toppings to make it a more balanced meal for them too.

The busy day didn’t end there because right after we ate this, we were off to see Hailey’s artwork that was featured in this year’s school art show. So proud of her for making it into the show again this year. She loves her art class so much!

Well, there you have it for this What I Ate Wednesday!  I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to some fresh spring produce and warmer weather for grilling in the coming weeks/months!

We love celebrating St. Patrick’s Day around here!  It probably comes from living in Chicago for so long where the entire city celebrates with two huge parades, the river is dyed green, and lots of other shenanigans.  The kids get in on it too by building a leprechaun trap every year, but that sneaky guy always seems to get away and leave some chocolate “gold” coins behind instead.

Over the past few years, I’ve started experimenting with some fun holiday food ideas for the kids that don’t involve artificial food coloring.  Some studies have concluded that certain food colorings commonly used here in the U.S. are carcinogenic.  Most food coloring has also been linked to hyperactivity in kids, which I have seen firsthand in my own kids.  It took me awhile to make the connection between their behavior and what they had recently eaten, but once I started learning about the dangers of artificial food coloring, I now try to avoid them as much as possible.

As an alternative, its really easy to puree a little spinach with some water and add it to any kind of pancake or muffin batter or even eggs – that’s what we’ll be doing tomorrow morning for breakfast!  Of course, you could make any one of my green smoothie or juice combinations as well!  A combination of almond milk, peanut butter, banana, and spinach is an all-time green smoothie favorite that my kids will devour.  Spinach has such a mild flavor that a small handful will blend right into just about anything without changing the flavor profile.

I thought this was a fun idea that didn’t involve dyeing anything green.  And it went great alongside green pesto pasta for dinner!

Bell pepper strips arranged like a rainbow over a bowl of veggie dip with carrot chips as gold coins at the end of the rainbow.

Just like my post earlier this week with the taco seasoning, I made my own Ranch seasoning mix.  The store-bought packaged versions all contain MSG, even the organic brands.  Its so easy to throw a handful of dried spices together and keep it on hand for dressing or dip.

Ranch Seasoning

• 2 T. dried parsley
• 2 tsp. dried dill
• 1 tsp. dried garlic powder
• 1 tsp. dried onion powder
• 1/2 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• some fresh ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients and store in an airtight container.

To make Ranch vegetable dip, mix 1 Tablespoon of seasoning with 1/2 cup sour cream (or Greek yogurt) and 1-2 Tablespoons of good quality, clean ingredient mayonnaise such as soy-free Vegenaise.  Let it sit for 2 hours for flavors to develop.

I hope you have a HAPPY St. Patrick’s Day!