I looked back at my last “That’s
A Keeper” post and it was posted in January!
How did SO much time pass between me posting on some of my favorite
recipes?? I’ll tell you how…life is
busy! Between training for my marathon, being
crazy busy at work, and now the holidays, I’ve been trying to keep up with my
blog every other week, but the truth is that hasn’t happened. I haven’t been as consistent as I would have
liked to, but as I always keep repeating, I’ll post when I have time and when I
have something to talk about. Which
leads me to a few of my favorite recipes, that is definitely something to talk
about. There are always going to be hits
and misses with recipes that I try, and I definitely wish I could read a recipe
and know just by reading how’d it turn out.
I just don’t have that gift. Nor
do I have the gift of being able to concoct my own recipes. So kudos to the people that do recipe
development. But I do have one favor to
ask, can you really only post successful recipes? I made some “Lemon Pistachio Shortbread
Cookies” this morning – they do NOT stick together.
 |
| Sure they look good...but you didn't see how many times they crumbled and fell apart! |
When the recipe tells me to use my hands to
roll them I just have to laugh. I barely
salvaged them by using a cookie scoop to try and get them to somewhat stay
together. The recipe should’ve read, “Be
prepared to have them fall apart, all over you.
They will never really stick together, fyi.” The flavor is okay, but truth be told: these will NEVER be made in this household
again and what a waste of all my pistachios.
Again, I wish I could read a recipe and just know if it’ll make keeper
status. Until that time, I keep trying
so you don’t have to!
It is December 18th
and it still feels like summer here in Miami.
I’m not complaining, I’m just stating the facts. So having hot oatmeal in the mornings isn’t
always my go to choice. But I do love to
have a breakfast that I can prep the night before and doesn’t take too much
time in the morning. This Vanilla Chai
Oatmeal is full of flavor and just another way to put a spin on your normal
oats. The recipe calls for coconut milk
– I’ve made it with both regular milk and coconut milk – and both turn
out. I used the regular milk for the
extra protein. Additionally I have cut
out almost all added sugar in my diet (except for sweets like desserts!). In this recipe it calls for between 3-4
tablespoons of maple syrup – I ended up eating this recipe 3 times, so in
theory that’d be 1 tablespoon of maple syrup/serving – and that’s TOO much
added sugar to start your day with. Aim
to start lowering the amount of sugar you’re using. Your taste buds will adjust and get used to
using less sugar. Promise. Other add-ons to this recipe – I always add
nuts to my oatmeal to increase the protein content as well as increase my
satiety from the healthy fats in nuts.
Get creative and switch up your flavors with your oatmeal. This Vanilla Chai is delish! (no picture...all my overnight oats never look pretty!)
Whoever said eating their
vegetables had to be boring was WRONG!
Dead wrong. I think that
sometimes people haven’t had a good experience with vegetables and therefore
just write-off certain ones. Or even
worse, sometimes they haven’t even given the vegetable a try. Salad is a good way to get your greens in –
think spinach, kale, green leafy, red leafy, arugula, etc. Not to mention add a few pieces of fruit and
that always helps the vegetables taste better.
This salad combination uses pears and parmesan. I also added in walnuts. I’m always switching around the nut, the
fruit, and the cheese. The combinations
are almost endless! I have a persimmon
waiting in the kitchen for my next salad.
And my go to salad dressing is this balsamic vinaigrette by Williams
Sonoma. (I didn’t use the dressing in the recipe for
the salad…too much sugar!)
What more can I say but that this
sauce is EVERYTHING! And I do mean
everything!! For lunch I tend to eat
grain bowls – whether it’s quinoa, couscous, farro, barley – whatever the grain
is that’s the base of my bowl. Then I’ll
roast veggies for the week. I do an
assortment and rotate the veggies throughout the week to help get a variety. For my protein I’ll rotate a soft-boiled egg,
tofu, beans, and/or some nut concoction I’ve done – think cashew cream, almond
“feta”, etc. And lastly I add the sauce
– this is where all the flavors come together.
I’ve been trying to build a repertoire of sauces to have on hand. This way I can utilize a different sauce
throughout the week and even though the essence of the bowl is the same, the
sauce will let me think it’s a whole different bowl. Chimichurri can be used in so many ways –
even though I’m a pescatarian, it marries well with many flavors, not just
meat. Make this and you can thank me
later!
Leave it to Real Simple to create a quick weeknight meal. Little did I know when I stumbled upon this
recipe I’d learn how to make full-proof soft-boiled eggs. Score a W in the win column. I’ve said this before, but I’m not the best
in the kitchen. If I could have a Go Pro
camera watching my every move it’d be one for the history books. Epic fails – coconut macaroon crusts falling
on the floor and crumbling before my eyes, burning my hand on many a pan,
creaming butter and sugar and sugar flying everywhere, yeah there have been
some fails in this here kitchen of mine.
I follow the recipes, I swear I do!
Needless to say I was pleased when Real
Simple directed me to the perfect soft-boiled egg. Oh yeah, and the rest of the recipe is a
score for a keeper also. Simple, yet so
flavorful. The only thing I’d improve
upon is by adding even more tomatoes. Delish!
My tried and true go to salmon
recipe. While I’d love to experiment
with others, this has been the one I keep using over and over. I know I’m going to need a new one soon, but
here are the many reasons why I love it – I can make the sauce up and use it
throughout the week. Two – I can leave
the skin on the salmon when I get it from the seafood department at the
store. Three – Broiling the salmon makes
for a QUICK weeknight meal (6 minutes on each side). Four – training for the marathon has been
challenging to ensure I’m getting enough protein (I spot check it occasionally
and without the inclusion of the salmon I was eating WAY too much cheese). I don’t love chicken, beef, turkey, pork,
etc, but this salmon I can eat and enjoy.
I’ve been eating this three to four times/week to help ensure my protein
on my run days. Five – did I already say
it’s a quick weeknight meal? Well, that
is if I remember to defrost the salmon the night ahead. And don’t you worry, if that happens, it’s a
breakfast for dinner kind of night!
I’ll start off by saying the
picture doesn’t do these guys ANY justice.
I’m not exaggerating. Not only am I a walking mess in the kitchen,
I am also not the best photographer. My
skills have improved over the past few months, but this here photo was taken in
my early days when I was just starting out.
The cheesecake in this recipe is a liquid cheesecake – it’s exactly what
it sounds like – cheesecake, baked just enough for the batter to cook, but not
enough for it to maintain its structure.
Essentially a no fuss cheesecake recipe.
Follow the step-by-step directions for the crust – at first you may
doubt the process. Don’t. Hummingbird High gives THEE best
directions. I included a real dessert
recipe here, not some of the paleo, low carb ones I’ve been trying as of
recent. It’s a week till Christmas. It’s a holiday and holidays are meant to be
enjoyed. That includes desserts. Just don’t get confused and think that every
day is a holiday. You know what I’m
saying??
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. My stack of “recipes to
try” keeps growing. I wish they ALL were
keepers!
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