What about veggie burgers?!

Quick & Easy Black Bean & Veggie Burgers

Makes about 12 patties

(recipe inspired by Oh She Glows In a Jiffy Burgers)

I didn’t have all of the ingredients on hand, so I just added what I did have and I think they cam out pretty good.  Next time, I would season them more!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked black beans
• 3 small carrots
• 2 spring onions (bulb and stalk)
• 1 cubanelle pepper (or pepper of choice)
• 1 stalk of beet greens with stems removed
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 t sea salt
• 1/2 t dried chile pepper
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup curry flavored sunflower seeds (Kaia Foods)
• 2 tbsp pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 3/4 cup spelt flour

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375F.

Place all of the ingredients (except for the nuts, oats and flour) into a food processor and blend until smooth.  You can leave some chunks if you would like.  It is all personal preference.

After the mixture is blended, transfer it to a large mixing bowl and mix in the seeds, oats and flour until well mixed.  I mixed in the seeds, then oats, then flour in small increments.  Only use as much flour as you need.  My mixture was wet, so I added all 3/4 cups.

Shape the mixture into patties of any size.  This amount will make about 12 normal size patties, but next time I may make them smaller and roll them into balls as salad toppers!

Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes, then flip and bake another 15 minutes or so until patties are cooked, but not too dry.

We served these patties on a toasted whole wheat bun with a little mozarella cheese and a roasted red pepper/artichoke spread.

Along with kale chips and pickles as sides.

They were delicious!

You could also grill these, but you might want to bake them a little first to help them stay together.

Good ways to add protein into your smoothies:

• nut butter
• nuts
• protein powder
• yogurt
• milk
• oats

A smoothie can definitely be made into a meal by adding a few extras other than fruit.  Try a tbsp of peanut butter or pepitas (pumpkin seeds) for extra iron or hemp seeds for extra protein.

This morning, I was feeling like chocolate, so I mixed away in my Vita-Mix!

• 1 frozen banana (the key to a thicker smoothie!)
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries (antioxidants!)
• 5 frozen strawberries
• 1 cup frozen spinach
• 1 tbsp mango jelly
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
• 1 tbsp cacao powder
• dash vanilla
• 2 tbsp hemp seeds (extra protein)

It was a pretty yucky color, but sure did taste good!

Yum.

I try to stock up on frozen fruit when I am at Trader Joes because they make excellent smoothie additions.  The frozen fruit adds depth to the smoothie by making it thicker and colder.

Moving on…

I have been so thirsty lately!  Has anyone else been?  It must be the weather because I already drink a lot of water, but have been drinking so much more recently.  Darn humidity!

I wasn’t really hungry for a mid-morning snack, so I skipped right to an early lunch since that was on my mind - leftover Stuffed Patty Pan Squash!

Packed in two seperate containers to prevent them from tipping over and heated in the microwave at work, they were just as good as last night.

Along with the leftovers, I had a blueberry yogurt and 2 apricots.  A pretty well-balanced lunch if you ask me.

An afternoon snack included Livin’ Spoonful raw crackers (filled with nuts and herbs and oh so flavorful!) and lemon hummus.

And, a Refresh Glo Bar.  I loved this flavor.  Chocolate and mint is a favorite combination of mine!

I’m thinking of a quick run tonight before dinner, then I’ve got another quick and yummy recipe to whip up.

See ya!

A few weeks ago I saw a recipe for stuffed patty pan squash on Oh She Glows, so I thought I would give it a shot.  I basically followed Angela’s recipe, but made some modifications for what I had on hand.

Stuffed Patty Pan Squash

adapted from Oh She Glows (original recipe here)

Ingredients:

• 4 Patty Pan Squash
• 1 large zucchini
• 2 small carrots
• 1 spring onion, bulb and stalk
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 2 cups cooked black beluga lentils 
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 small jar tomato paste
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter of choice 
• sea salt & pepper to taste 
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• sprinkle parmesan cheese, optional

Directions:

Cut the tops off of your squash and the zucchini in half and scoop out the insides.

I sliced my zucchini into smaller pieces so that they would be easier to eat.

Add the squash and zucchini meat, onion bulb and stalk, carrots and garlic to your food processor and blend until smooth.

Let that mixture sit until you have your rice ready.

Add your cooked brown rice and lentils to a pot with the butter and tomato paste.  Warm over medium-low heat until the butter is melted and everything is mixed in.

Then, add the veggie mixture to the rice mixture and mix well.  Add italian seasoning (or seasoning of your choice), salt and pepper to taste.  I added about 1 tsp of salt and pepper.

Stuff the squash and zucchini.  I like them to be overflowing!

Then bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until the squash is tender.  23 minutes was perfect for this amount!

Let cool for a few minutes before serving and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

We loved these!  They were perfect and the tomato in the rice was awesome.

Glad I have leftovers for lunch today!

We received a bunch of different veggies in our box this week which always makes me more excited!

Tomatoes

Cherry Tomatoes

Potatoes

Kale

Green Pepper

Cubanelle Pepper

Beets

Carrots

Eggplant – Does anyone know what kind of eggplant this is?

It’s so pretty!

Onions

Cucumbers & Pickling Cucumbers

Zucchini

This zucchini is huge!

Corn

Garlic

I also picked up a few things  at the Farmer’s Market while I was in Maine this past weekend.  I just couldn’t resist!

Squash/Zucchini

Patty Pan Squash!

It looks like a tremendous week for veggies!  Look out for some fun recipes coming your way.

My Vita-Mix 5200!

And, look at that, she just fits under the counter.  The base is huge, but I guess that is where all of the power comes from.  And, when I say power – the Vita-Mix is powerful!

It has low and high speeds along with variable speeds, which are great.  When making a smoothie, Vita-Mix recommends that you start off on 1 and slowly turn the knob up to 10 before flipping it on high for 30 seconds to completely blend.  This gets rid of a chance for air pockets which will cause the smoothie to stop blending properly.

You can also use the tamper to push down your ingredients to get them to blend properly.  It works like a charm when making ice cream and nut butters.

This morning, I decided to make a smoothie, so I dropped all of my ingredients into the blender.

• beet greens
• 1 frozen banana
• 6 frozen strawberries
• 1/2 frozen mango
• 1/2 cup frozen pineapple
• 1 tsp spirulina
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 2 tbsp hemp seeds

I blended away for no longer than 60 seconds and came out with an extremely smooth smoothie!

The Vita-Mix was quick!  And, completely blended everything.  I didn’t have chunks of greens or hemp seeds throughout like I normally would have with my other blender.  I could not even tell that there were greens or seeds in the smoothie!  It was awesome.

Over the past few days, I have also made ice cream and multiple smoothies in the Vita.  Each time, it comes out perfect.  It pulverizes the frozen fruit, greens and nuts in a matter of seconds.

I am extremely happy about my purchase!

One other great thing, is how you clean it.  Rinse out the pitcher and fill half way with water and a squirt of dish soap.

Use the variable speed to get up to 10.

Then, blend on high for 30-60 seconds.

Viola!  A clean blender!

I’m so excited!!!

I was starving once lunch rolled around, so I pulled out some random veggies, eggs and hummus that I had packed.

A sliced up pickling cucumber and leftover grilled eggplant.

2 hard boiled eggs.

And, lemon hummus.

Some snacks today included yogurt, a nectarine and a S’more Glo Bar.

The Adore Glo Bar was good, but not my favorite.  I much prefer the Chocolate Coffee Bar!  Still, a great texture and flavor, though.

We are off for pizza and a talk on Barefoot Running tonight.

Have a great one.

I have received a few requests for photos/descriptions of my weekly grocery shopping trips.  To me, pantry staples are just as important as what you buy each week at the grocery store, so it is only fair that I talk about them together!

(Source)

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Pantry Staples

First, let’s talk about what I keep in my pantry at all times.  I like to keep my nuts, dried fruits, flours and other stuff in mason jars.

I have a lot!  But, I only buy them once a month, maybe once every 2 months!  Some items run out more quickly than others, but these are good staples to have on hand, especially if you are going to be making your own breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day (or at least most days!).

By keeping these things around, you can whip up a quick and delicious dinner any day without having to run out to the store mid-way through cooking.

Grains - Quinoa, Brown Rice, Bulgar

These 3 grains are great to keep on hand.  They can be used as the base of any stirfry, in soups, as breakfast cereals, or just eaten plain.

Beans - Chickpeas, Lentils, Black Beans

Sometimes I buy other beans in my normal weekly grocery shopping trips when I am in the mood for a change!  I love beans, but my husband does not, so a little goes a long way with us.  I buy my beans dried and cook them myself in my slow cooker – see recipe here.

Nuts/Seeds – Flaxseeds, Walnuts, Pecans, Chia Seeds, Almonds, Pepitas, Sunflower Seeds, Cashews Hemp Seeds

Nuts and seeds pack a healthy punch, so we keep a lot around.  I only fill the smaller mason jars with nuts, since they can go rancid if kept too long, but mine have never stayed around long enough to go bad.   I use my nuts to make my own nut butters, use as salad toppers, mix them in my smoothies, grind them into flour for baked goods and veggie burgers, and just to eat as snacks.  You can pick and choose which nuts to keep in your pantry!

Dried Fruit - Apricots, Bananas, Pineapple

Dried fruit can be added to cereal, backed goods, salads and eaten as snacks.  I usually have dried bananas, apricots and mangoes, the others vary depending on what I am feeling.  Trader Joes has great prices on dried fruit – just make sure you get the kind with no added sugar!

Oats – Steel Cut, Rolled, Scottish

Steel cut oats are my favorite for breakfast, while rolled are great in pancakes, cookies, veggie burgers, etc!

Spices – a wide variety

Spices are very important for cooking to give a dish the flavors that you want to satisfy your palate.  Spices can make or break a dish!  We keep a wide variety of spices around so that we can make a variety of different things.  Always make sure you have a good salt!

Oils/Vinegars - Olive Oil, Grapeseed Oil, Coconut Oil, Coconut Aminos, Apple Cider Vinegar, Coconut Vinegar

For everyday cooking and baking, I keep olive oil, grapeseed oil, coconut oil, coconut aminos, apple cider and coconut vinegar on hand.  Most things can be made with these!

Baking Supplies – Flours, Sugars, Oils

You don’t need to keep this many supplies on hand.  A simple whole wheat flour, natural cane sugar and healthy oil would be enough, but I love to bake and I love to try new things, so I keep a variety of flours, sugars and oils on hand.

EXTRAS - Nut Butters, Chocolate, Coconut

These are just some things that are good to have on hand– nut butters, unsweetened coconut and cacao powder (I buy the last 2 in bulk!).  I love love love coconut and chocolate, so they are always around.

Other good staples (which I am out of!) include: diced tomatoes, veggie broth, tomato paste, canned soup and pasta.

Supplements – Maca, Spirulina, Hemp Protein Powder

Just some things I love.  I mostly use them in my smoothies.  Maca is a natural energy booster, spirulina is a mix of different greens and protein powder gives you extra protein after a tough workout to restore your muscles.

In the Fridge

We keep a variety of staples in our fridge.  Everything from ketchup, mustard and pickles to jams and nut butters, to dairy and protein powders, to fresh produce!

In the Freezer

The freezer is mostly made up of frozen fruit (for smoothies), frozen veggies (for in a pinch meals) and other things that I make and freeze – applesauce, pesto, burgers, etc.

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Weekly Grocery Shopping Trip

Now, on to my weekly shopping trip…

From June through October, we belong to a CSA where we pick up all of our vegetables for the week.  Therefore, I do not buy any veggies at the grocery store, unless I need something extra for some reason.

Here is a normal CSA box that we would receive.  This is from Week 1 where we mostly received greens, but check out my other posts each week here to see lots of different veggies!

A lof of greens and other veggies to get us through the week!

Do to our box, my grocery trip for those 5 months is much lighter than normal.  Come the late fall and winter, I will be buying my produce at the store too (and it normally is about the same amount as seen above).

In the cart?

• yogurt
• frozen fruit
• bananas
• apples, berries, or other fruit
• eggs
• milk
• almond milk or hemp milk
• spinach (I use it in my smoothies!)
• meat for the husband

That’s it!

The only other thing that I buy once in awhile is cereal, but normally I prefer to make my own granola out of the oats, nuts and dried fruit I have in my pantry.

Between our CSA and our Pantry, we don’t need anything else!  I try not to buy a lot of packaged snacks because I would prefer to eat a homemade trail mix, granola bar or other freshly made snack.

I used to plan all of our meals, then shop.  Now, with my well stocked pantry and my CSA, I can create basically anything I want with what I have on hand, plus the veggies and my small weekly grocery shop!

With a pantry full of grains/beans/nuts/seeds/spices and a fridge full of fruits and veggies, you really can make anything that you want!

Have fun with your food.

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I received a very generous sampling from Divine Foods a few months ago and have been working my way through their line of Prana and Boomi bars.

I was sent their line of Prana Bars, Super Charger Prana Bars and Boomi Bars to try out.

[Disclaimer: I did receive these products for free, however, the review is my honest opinion.  If I did not like the products, I would tell you!  I only accept samples of items that I know I will like and that fit into my eating plan.]

All of their bars are made with organic, simple, easy to pronounce ingredients, which excites me right away.  For example, the Pear Ginseng Prana Bar contains the following ingredients: Organic Agave Nectar, Organic Date Paste, Organic Almond Butter, Organic Almonds, Organic Pears, Organic Sesame Seeds, Organic Puffed Amaranth, Organic Ginseng, Sea Salt.

Not too shabby!

Prana Bars have a very smooth texture.  Like Larabars, they are made from a base of dates, but they also contain puffed amaranth, which gives it a different (and great!) texture from a Larabar.

My favorites are below.  I really enjoyed these bars.  The flavors are so interesting and they all really worked together!  I was very impressed.

Super Charger Prana Bars have the same texture as the Prana bars (above), but contain some ‘superfoods’, such as goji berries and maca, which make them super!  I loved all 4 of these flavors and really cannot decide which I liked best, although the Blueberry Coconut was awesome!

Boomi Bars were my favorite of all of the bars due to the texture.  They were chunkier than the Prana bars which I enjoyed.  I like chunks of nuts and fruit throughout, which these definitely had.  In addition to the amaranth, these bars also contain crisp rice which definitely makes the texture.  Normally, I try to stay away from white rice, but in a product like this that I am not going to eat every single day, it is okay with me.  Plus, it makes the bar!

I had a really hard time deciding on favorites because tha majority of flavors were great!

Overall, I really liked all of the Prana and Boomi Bars that I tried.  I would definitely buy these products when I was in need of a snack and would use them as just that – a snack.  Their website says that they can be used as meal replacements, but I don’t agree.  They don’t have nearly enough fat, calories or protein for a meal.

Enjoy!

I started reading Born To Run by Christopher MacDougall last week and when I hit page 44, I was psyched!  [If you are a runner and haven't read the book, you should definitely do so.  I haven't finished yet, but I love it already!]

The author had met up with the Tarahumaras and they had given him something to drink, iskiate.  Check out what he says below:

“Months later, I’d learn that iskiate is otherwise known as chia fresca – “chilly chia.”  It’s brewed up by dissolving chia seeds in water with a little sugar and a squirt of lime.  In terms of nutritional content, a tablespoon of chia is like a smoothie made from salmon, spinach, and human growth hormone.  As tiny as those seeds are, they’re super packed with omega-3s, omega-6s, protein, calcium, iron, zinc, fiber, and antioxidants. If you had to pick just one desert-island food, you couldn’t do much better than chia, at least if you were interested in building muscle, lowering cholesterol, and reducing your risk of heart disease; after a few months on the chia diet, you could probably swim home.  Chia was once so treasured, the Aztecs used to deliver it to their king in homage.  Aztec runners used to chomp chia seeds as they went into battle, and the Hopis fueled themselves on chia during their epic runs from Arizona to the Pacific Ocean.  The Mexican state of Chiapas is actually names after the seed; it used to rank right up there with corn and beans as cash crop.  Despite its liquid-gold status, chia is ridiculously easy to grow; if you own a Chia Pet, in fact, you’re only a few stepped away from your own batch of the devil drink.” From Born To Run by Christopher McDougall.

Now do you believe how great chia seeds are for you?!

Yes, by chia seeds, I mean the same ones that come from our favorite pets…

(Source)

…the chia pet is sprouts grown from the seeds.  Obviously, if kept dry, yours will not sprout.

Initially, some may not like the texture of the seeds, but it does grow on you!  They take in a lot of water and have a sort of slimy texture.  If you mix it them into smoothies or oatmeal, or sprinkle them on your foods, you can barely tell they are there.

Chia seeds have amazing health benefits:

• you do not need to grind the seed to make it digestible
• helps stabilize your blood sugar
• has nutrients like Omega-3′s, calcium, proteins, antioxidants, fiber and complex carbohydrates
• maintains hydration
• help to fill you up – chia seeds expand to more than 30 times their size
• and much more…

Chia seeds can basically be added to anything.  In the past, I have added them to many things:

Smoothies

Overnight oats – before & after

Granola Bars

They are also great as salad toppers, oatmeal toppers and cereal toppers.  And, I have heard that they can replace flaxseeds in some recipes.  I hope to try that out soon!

Chia seeds have become very widely available over the past few years.  I have always seen them at Whole Foods and my local health food store.  Give them a try!

We were also psyched about the heirloom cherry tomatoes that we have been waiting for since the start of the CSA!  They were super sweet and juicy.  Perfect eaten on their own or in a chopped salad.

Cherry Tomatoes

Corn

Green Pepper

Beets

Carrots

Watercress

Eggplant

Celery

Onions

Cucumber/ Pickling Cucumbers

Zucchini

A week full of fresh veggies!

I cannot believe that I haven’t had quinoa in over a month.  We used to have quinoa once or twice a week, but I haven’t been craving it lately.  Well, it tasted delicious tonight!

We all know that I love 101cookbooks.com and this recipe was another one that did not disappoint.  I followed the recipe, but subbed almonds for pinenuts and omitted the cheese.  While the quinoa was cooking, I sauteed an onion over medium heat with a little salt and olive oil until tender.  I mixed the onion with the quinoa before mixing in the sauce.

Quinoa and Grilled Zucchini (see recipe here)

My favorite part of the dish was the sauce!  It is so good, I would make this as a salad dressing or as a sauce for rice or just grilled veggies.  It seems very versatile and is so yummy!  Great for the summer.

The sauce is made up of avocado, plain yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, garlic and salt.

Trust me, it is so good!

I started out my day with a 4.5 mile run in the heat and humidity.  I swear, this heat makes me much slower and I get tired so much more easily…I hope it is the heat!

After my run, I drank some juice.

And, had some toast – Fig Fennel & Flax Manna Bread.

Spread with Cinnamon Vanilla Sunflower Seed Butter and enjoyed with a banana and my juice, which was a delicious blend of pineapple, pear and ginger.  Very yummy.

I was starving for lunch, so I dug right into my leftover chopped salad from last night.  The salad was even better today after marinating overnight!

Along with a yogurt and 2 sweet and juicy apricots!

I tried the new Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Larabar for an afternoon snack and it was amazing.  Very peanut buttery with chocolate chips throughout.

Try these new Larabar’s!  You won’t be disappointed…and if you are, send them to me!