It’s my Saturday morning ritual. Long run, breakfast with my running buddy,
and then planning my groceries for the week.
Yesterday I came home and began to sort through ALL the recipes I have. I have a stack and I mean a stack of recipes
just waiting to try. I scroll through
Instagram, Facebook, and now Twitter.
Yes, Twitter. There are SO many
resources to find recipes. I’m starting
to get a little overwhelmed with all of the recipes I want to try. I try to be selective and think ahead as to
what really will be a “keeper” and weed out ones that won’t make the cut. Maybe they just sounded good the first time around
but at the second look I know I must’ve been hungry at the time that recipe
made the cut. J I also got the America’s Test Kitchen
Cookbook – The Complete Vegetarian
Cookbook – a couple of months ago.
Talk about overwhelming. I know ALL
their recipes will turn out! They tested them for pete’s sake! The only problem again with their book is
there are TOO many to try! The other premise for picking out some recipes
is whether or not I’ll be able to make it.
I am not a cook by any means. And
if any of you all know me, accidents find me.
Yesterday when I was making homemade waffles I was opening the seltzer
water and sure enough it exploded. I don’t
buy carbonated beverages and definitely wasn’t prepared for that!! Who does that happen to? Moi. I
need a hidden camera in my kitchen so that people would believe the chaos in
the kitchen J
“Keeper” – a recipe that I’ve
tried that’s a definite success and makes it into my “keeper” recipe book, ultimately
a possible repeat recipe. The key word being repeat – I haven’t
repeated any in quite a few months, but I know I have my tried and true recipes
when and if they’re needed. Here are a
few of the latest rounds of keeper recipes.
Breakfast: Cinnamon
Oatmeal Pancakes
I was in the grocery store the
other day and noticed all of the frozen breakfast products. Frozen waffles, pancakes, breakfast
sandwiches, and even frozen oatmeal for you.
Packaged and convenient, all you need to do is warm it up. It
actually grossed me out. I know I’ve had
this conversation before and convenience is a really big issue, but cooking
healthy will require a little bit of
planning and time spent toward the cooking.
Sorry not sorry. These pancakes
are a prime example where you can make a lot ahead of time and freeze
them. They freeze amazingly!! I am not the best at flipping pancakes so
instead of crowding the griddle I do less at a time and use two spatulas for
the flipping. Mine may have not turned
out as pretty but they sure did taste delish.
I always add protein in for the breakfast with nut butter on top of the
pancakes. Breakfast is typically high
carbohydrate and not enough protein and then you’re hungry right away. Always add the protein – it will keep you
satiated for longer. I rotate through
the nut butters: peanut, almond, and
cashew – to help provide some variety and flavor. I also add some hemp seed on top as
well. More about hemp seed later. Make these pancakes, you won’t regret it.
I can’t tell you how many recipes
for overnight oats I have tried. I have
felt bad in throwing the oats out (but couldn’t stomach eating them so I had to
waste them). I almost gave up in trying
the overnight oats trend. Until this
recipe came along. I’m not sure if it
has to do with the quantity being individual sizes or what but this recipe
comes out delish! I was a little bit
doubtful when she said it could be eaten cold.
The first morning I made it and forgot I had made it the night
before. The 2nd day I was
determined to remember to eat them and was in a rush. I had to grab the oatmeal on the run (so
there was no time to heat it up). Cold
it was. Surprisingly it was good even
cold! Now don’t get me wrong, heating it
up just a bit allows the nut butter to melt and I do prefer it warmed just a
tad. But in a pinch, cold will work! I am such a believer in this recipe that I made
these overnight oats for a program of 12 people at work. There I was the night before prepping each
individual Mason jar (with love). I did
alter the recipe and used regular cow’s milk, just ½ tablespoon of maple syrup,
and did a mix of peanut butter or almond butter. I knew the exact carbohydrate count for the
participants (Type 1 DM where they inject insulin based on the carbohydrate
count) and I wanted to show them how eating on the run/go could be easy. 10 of the 12 participants liked the
recipe. The two that didn’t said, “It
was too healthy tasting”. Okay maybe they
need the full tablespoon of maple syrup.
I think the odds are good for liking these overnight oats. Make them, just don’t forget to eat them the
next day – the chia seeds do swell and it will get too thick to eat if left too
long. (this picture is the minimalist baker's - it's a double portion of the recipe!)
Can every night be Taco Tuesday
night? And why isn’t there a taco emoji yet?
I’m always telling patients to plan their monthly meals ahead of time
(at least weekly). Tacos can be part of
the weekly meal rotation. They’re easy
to throw together and can taste completely different from the taco from the
week before, so it won’t feel like it’s a repeat. Which is important when it comes to making
dinner for the family (in the hopes that all will like what’s being
prepared). Here are two, both vegetarian
(you can always add some grilled chicken or steak), one that takes a little
more preparation time and one that takes virtually no time at all.
Brussels Sprout Tacos with Caramelized Shallot Salsa – If
you think you don’t like onions (shallots) think again. These tacos will take some time due to roasting
the tomatoes and Brussel sprouts and caramelizing the shallots, but it is SO
worth it. This lady, Jessica Merchant,
has a talent for pairing together the right flavors. Sometimes
I’ll read her blog and think, no that can’t be.
I have learned never to doubt her. Her
flavor combinations are on point all the time.
My only gripe? She needs more vegetarian recipes J These tacos are quite delicious and they do
warm up well (if you’re only making for one, like me!)
Quinoa Black Bean Tacos – Super easy and quite
delicious! Two thumbs up also because ALL
her recipes are vegetarian! This is
another blog, Cookie and Kate (her dog) that I have been using a lot of
lately. Her recipes are vegetarian and
are simple to make. For being so simple
and having so much flavor is a plus for me.
I love using quinoa as part of the combination here. Quinoa is a grain that is a complete protein –
having all the amino acids, essential and nonessential. Not to mention quinoa has more protein than
other grains. For me as a vegetarian the
key is making sure to balance my protein with my carbohydrates. It’s very easy as a vegetarian to eat high
carbohydrate meals (as the protein might be lacking from an animal
source). While it is harder to get a
sufficient amount of plant protein it is possible. As a dietitian I am always constantly aware
of this and am striving to make sure that I get the sufficient amount of
protein that I need. This helps stave
off cravings that may occur because I didn’t give my body what it adequately
needs.
Vegan Jalapeño Sauce – I found this gem of a sauce on
another taco night. This vegan sauce has
the base of cashews. Think of a cool
ranch kind of flavor. That’s THIS
sauce. The best part (besides it helping
to give me more protein at every meal?) it’s versatile! Yes it was great as a sauce for my tacos, but
it worked well the next day as a salad dressing – a sauce that can “blend once”
and eat more times kind of sauce – as the author/maker of this sauce states,
and it’s the truth! I love a variety of nuts to help obtain my
protein, but cashews hands down are the most versatile. You can make them into a savory type sauce or
into something sweet, it’s kind of hard to believe they can do that! I’ve made them before in a vegan
cheesecake. They really can be both
savory and sweet.
Snack – Nutty Jumbles
These are absolutely SO easy to
make. I buy the Planter’s Mixed Nuts
(50% fewer peanuts unsalted) mix so I have a variety of nuts and don’t have to
worry about measuring each nut out individually. Yes, there is some sugar added in along with
the egg white, but after you bake them this is what helps them bind
together. The percentage of
carbohydrate to protein is a perfect balance and isn’t skewed to have too much
of one or the other – perfect snack in my book.
I eat nuts every day to help obtain my protein for the day. Every now and then I need to spruce them up
and make them taste a little different than just your average nut. I’ve used nuts to make “taco meat”, the
cashew sauce as above, and even blended them up to make a fake parmesan
cheese. These nutty jumbles bring the
natural flavor of the nuts out when they roast in the oven. Simple and delicious, what’s not to love?
Snack – Almond Butter
Cookies
I’m all for experimenting. This recipe did just that for me. A cookie without an egg you say? Let’s go.
You mix flaxseed meal along with some water and let it sit for a few
minutes. This acts as the binder in the recipe
(similar to what an egg does) and is used quite often in vegetarian/vegan
baking recipes. These cookies are so delicious
and proved me to be a believer when using the “flax-egg”. Many have bombed and none stood the test of
time. These do. I haven’t made them with another nut butter,
but I can tell you now, they didn’t last long at all and need to be made again. Picture by the Simple Veganista.
My new go to add it to everything
item: Hemp seeds. I’ve been doing this for a while now and I’m
not sure why I haven’t shared this idea before. I throw hemp seeds in my salad dressing (so
they don’t sink to the bottom of my salad), I throw hemp seeds in those
overnight oats, I throw it on top of my nut butter toasts – anywhere and everywhere
I can add it I do. These little seeds give you the nutritional
power of hemp with a blend of omega-3 and omega-6 fats and high fiber content. There are 10 grams of protein per 3
tablespoons. They are also a good source
of magnesium, a mineral that helps with relaxation, blood sugar control, blood
pressure, and potentially osteoporosis.
Yes they are calorically dense, but they are NUTRIENT dense as
well. So easy to add in the day to my
meals and help me obtain a sufficient amount of protein to help balance my
carbohydrate intake. Hemp seeds have a
rich nutty flavor that makes everything just taste better. Try it.
So there you have it – a few more
recipes that have recently made it into my “keepers”. I hope you see a recipe or two that you might
like to try. Why struggle to find a new recipe
if you’re not sure that’ll turn out?
Start your own “keeper” cookbook.
You’ll be glad you did.
No comments:
Post a Comment