Repeats

If you have picked up on a lack of posts lately, it's not bc I'm not cooking, it's bc I'm making a bunch of repeat meals that I've already blogged about. I can only write about recipes so many different ways! 

Last week we had broccoli burgers w/ home made ranch, fresh kale chips and leftover quinoa fried rice that I had made for Mother's Day. See previous posts about broccoli patties, kale chips and quinoa fried rice.

I also made one of my favorite dishes, Italian Spinach Pie with a side of fresh Kale Chips (we've been eating a lot of those lately). See previous post for details and recipe. I changed the recipe a little bit this time bc I couldn't find any cottage cheese without Carrageenan (yucky stuff found in dairy that we try to avoid at all costs, or whenever possible). Whole Foods was out of the one and only brand of cottage cheese that doesn't have this "ingredient" so I thought and thought while standing in the dairy aisle and then decided I would substitute with plain greek yogurt. I added a little extra mozzarella to the mix to try and offset the change in ingredients and it came out perfectly fine. I only added one container (I think they're about 5 ounces or so) of yogurt.

As for veggies (in addition to spinach), I added a zucchini, a crooked neck yellow squash (aka Mexican squash) and some mushrooms. I also had an organic, whole wheat, not chalked full of crappy horrible ingredients pie crust in my freezer (they are sold in 2 packs at Whole Foods so it's nice to have on hand).  Even with the change in dairy ingredients, the pie came out amazing! This dish is a favorite in our house, you must give it a try!

Quinoa Zucchini Patties/Balls

On Sunday I made these Quinoa-Zucchini Meatballs only I turned a couple of them into patties so husband and I could have burgers. Husband is really supportive of the way I cook but there are limits to this! I cannot just throw 3 or 4 "meatless" meatballs on a plate and call it his dinner. He'll want to know where the rest is! So I meet him in the middle and adapt things into what I know will qualify as a "meal"; such as turning quinoa zucchini meatballs into a burger, with sustenance. This way he never questions what's on his plate. I already know ahead of time what will pass and what he might balk at so I beat him to it by always working up a "meal-worthy" plate. Anyways...

This recipe was very simple to make and came out pretty darn good. Husband doesn't usually eat tomatoes but once in a while his stomach will tolerate a small amount so I asked for his "permission" to add the tomato to this recipe. By "asking for permission" I really mean to say that I was giving him the courtesy of telling him that I was adding a small amount to the mixture. And I didn't have any tomato paste on hand so I used ketchup. It was only a small amount and it didn't affect him so it's all good! My kids loved the "meatballs" and ate several! 

I also served some zucchini that I sautéed in a little sesame oil and some artichokes right out of my mom's garden. I boiled the artichokes to cook them through and then cut them in half, scooped out the stickers with a spoon, drizzled some olive oil, salt and pepper and cooked on my grill pan for a few minutes. I had a distraction while I was throwing this meal together so I cooked the artichoke longer than I should have but they still tasted great! This is my favorite way to eat artichoke (grilled w/ some oil, salt and pepper). 

Shrimp n' Veggies

I saw a recipe for orange chicken and asparagus on Pinterest that I wanted to try except husband doesn't tolerate oranges very well so I was just going to substitute that for lemon. Then I decided to buy shrimp instead of chicken bc we rarely eat it and I found some wild USA shrimp on sale. I pretty much followed the recipe below, adding lemon instead of orange; I also added some mushrooms and zucchini to the veggie mix since I had them on hand. I made some brown rice to go along with it and dinner was pretty darn good. Shrimp was kid (and husband) approved! 

Stuffed Bell Peppers

I have never made stuffed bell peppers the same way twice. This is my "garbage dispose" meal bc I throw in just about anything I have on hand (that sounds good at the time). I normally start with the usual ingredients, ground turkey (I used 1 lb this time whereas I normally only include 1/2 lb), about a cup or so of cooked quinoa, one container (about 1/2 cup) of plain greek yogurt, hydrated chia seeds and then veggies and spices. 

On this night I added some organic frozen corn and I had a couple zucchini left over from the farmers market that HAD to be used that day or they'd have headed to the compost pile. For spices I just sprinkled in some onion and garlic powder, a little pepper and a lot of cumin (I love the flavor of cumin). I mixed everything together, filled the halved peppers and baked them at 350 for about an hour. Husband likes the peppers good and mushy whereas I can eat them after they've cooked for about 45 minutes or so. Whatever! I cooked them just over an hour I think and then I added some shredded white cheddar (TJs has the best organic white cheddar) and just let that melt on top; it took about 3 more minutes in the oven. 

The stuffed peppers came out pretty well for just winging in. I thought they were delicious and my family devoured them (accept my four year old wasn't feeling the actual pepper this time; he did eat all of the stuffing tho)! 

Cilantro Lime Dressing

My husband and I love cilantro lime dressing but it is impossible to find a healthy(ish) bottle on the shelves. They are either REALLY high in fat or just packed full of horrible ingredients that we try to steer clear of. I was really excited to find a recipe on Pinterest so we gave it a try last night. 

I had another bag of left over chicken (see chicken salad post for reference) in the freezer that I wanted to use up so I threw together a salad with lettuce (duh!), tomato (for me), pinto beans, olives, pepita seeds, some crushed tortilla chips (the "healthier" variety), avocado (for husband and kids; I on the other HATE it), a little shredded cheese and the delicious dressing. The reciepe was really easy to throw together. I added the juice of two limes and the zest of one; I REALLY like lime and wanted it to be dominant). Husband and kids loved it. They endedup scooping the left over dressing out of the bowl w/ tortilla chips doubling it's use as both a dressing and dip! No waste!

Chicken Salad

I made chicken salad for the first time ever last week and it came out really good. I had some chicken breast and thigh meat in the freezer that I wanted to use up (left over from one of my batches of chicken soup-I boil a whole chicken but don't use nearly all of the meat so I freeze it for later use). I just winged it by adding ingredients that I have a had and liked in chicken salad previously. I chopped one apple, a couple stalks of celery and a handful of walnuts. 

As for the dressing, I wasn't sure what would work best and my husband HATES mayonnaise so I didn't want to use that for the base. I looked on Pinterest for some ideas and ended up mixing 2 tablespoons of dijon mustard with a container (about 1/2 cup) of plain greek yogurt. I added a little pepper and mixed all of the ingredients together. 

The yogurt/mustard concoction sounded awful to me but I went w/ it. The chicken salad was amazing! Husband was very happy with the result and we ate the entire batch in about 2 days. I used it to make wraps w/ my fav, Lavash bread from TJ' and some fresh lettuce from our garden! 

The chicken salad adventure made me happy bc I made it with things I already had on hand; I didn't have to buy anything extra! I was able to take a mish-mosh of ingredients from my kitchen and come up with a delicious and healthy lunch alternative that fed 3 of us lunch for 2 days in a row. If I only I could come up with more meals this way!

Lentil "Meatloaf"

I saw this recipe for Lentil "Meatloaf" on a blog I follow. It was fairly simple and really good. I made the lentils the night before (to save time) so when I got home from work, I was able to throw everything together pretty quickly. I did add some extra veggies to the mix; I diced carrot, onion and celery and sauteed in a little olive oil (just to soften them up a bit) for about 5-10 minutes. I also had to omit the ketchup and bbq sauce (bc my husband cannot eat tomatoes) so I just added a little to the top of half the loaf while it baked. 

I baked this a little longer than the recipe called for just bc I wanted it to be good and settled and the top wasn't all that golden yet. It came out really well. Family approved!