This salad is everything that is SUMMER. Almost every ingredient is something you can pick up at your local farmers market and/or, a friends garden. Summer is coming to an end, so I am trying to get in all of my favorites before the cold sets in, and produce costs goes up! Click here for the link to this awesome side dish!
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Ohio, will you ever see the sunshine? Spring is for the birds. Give me humidity, heat, and sunshine! So, let dig into what I have to share today. First off, tofu is not something I eat on a regular basis. Actually, this is only about the second time I have EVER tried it. However, with all of the convaluted articles on wether soy is good or bad for you, I play it safe and eat it sparingly. Non-GMO of course. This vegan dish has a wonderful texture and tastes de-VINE! A little spicy but not overwhelming. And if you choose to top with guacamole or avocado, that also adds a bit of creaminess and helps tame down the spice a bit. It is great over both rice or riced cauliflower! Ingredients: Servings - 6 to 8
*Note- This is a good dish to try with riced cauliflower if wanting to lower carb intake. Green Giant brand contains no added salt or ingredients other then cauliflower. I prefer the “medley” which also includes peas and carrots. Also, the serving size on this is 4 for big bowls, however I split it among 8 smaller portions for meal prep and paired it with sides of broccoli and green beans. For directions and the original recipe, head over to “This Savory Vegan”. Happy Tuesday everyone! I found this recipe when searching for a savory vegetarian stuffed pepper and after reading the ingredients, I knew it was going to be a winner. I have tried something similar before, but it was more of a mexican style rather then italian. Quite frankly, italian seems to work better in my opinion. However, I will say that I am very picky when it comes to peppers. Yellow and reds are my favorite when cooking, and green peppers I will eat just like an apple. Raw and cold. On the original recipe, it gives her version of a homemade marinara and it would equally work for this. However, I have a solid recipe that I have been making for years and I am just a bigger fan of mine then anyone else's 😃 . So, with that said, do what works for you! Even jarred would work, just look for no added sugars and low sodium. Italian Vegan Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients: Servings: 8 For my homemade sauce, click here For the Peppers:
For directions, head to Parsnips + Pastries blog! Good Morning Everyone! Easter is tomorrow and with that comes family, food, and for me… LOTS of coffee. Im a bit of a caffeine addict. But, who isn’t these days right? I am so excited to share this recipe with you today. Casseroles have always been one of my favorite things to make because more time then not, you just throw some ingredients in a pan, bake, and viola.. you have a delicious hearty dish! I had actually been thinking up this dish for a few weeks before making. I wanted to make sure that all the ingredients would go together perfectly and dammit, they do. Something I have been cooking with alot more are these smoked sun-dried tomatoes. Im telling you, if you haven’t tried them yet, please give them a shot. Mushrooms, red peppers, feta, and smoked sun-dried tomatoes are what drive this dish. The spices are just the passengers. I recommend using a glass pan rather then a metal pan. Personally, whenever making egg dishes in a metal pan, they have always sticked. Luckily for me, these popped out perfectly, kept shape, and re-heated to perfection. Completely ideal for meal prep and left overs. So next time you are looking for something new and easy to make for breakfast, give this a shot. Loaded Egg & Vegetable Casserole
Ingredients: Servings 6
Directions:
Ahhh, spring time is finally here! Not that it necessarily feels like it here in Ohio but, at least its getting closer to warmer weather. I stumbled upon this recipe and within the title read the words “fresh from the farmers market”. Suddenly all of my happy feels starting rolling in, reminding me of the warm summer mornings filled with coffee, strolls with the pooch, and hitting up our local farmers market bright and early before the summer heat (and crowd) set in. I feel warm and fuzzy just thinking about it. Now lets get into this recipe. The original recipe is linked here. My take is very similar, however I really enjoy using a darker meat (rather then breast) when baking. Why? Because those lovely delicious juices run all over the pan, and trust me, that is exactly what you want. However, you do want to make sure that you trim them of there fat first before cooking. It won't compromise the flavor but will definitely save you some excess calories! No complaints from the husband with this meal prep. After all, its basically meat and potatoes, whats to hate? Although, the original did call for onions as well, which if I had it my way, I would have definitely added. But, Demetrius hates onions so I added some dried onion instead. He never even noticed. Also noted below is the fact that my chicken (they were small pieces) was done before my carrots were. So, easy fix. Take the chicken out to rest and continue cooking the vegetables until tender. My potatoes crisped up a bit and my carrots turned out wonderful. Roasted Chicken Bake - With Carrots and Potatoes
Ingredients Servings: 4
Directions
**NOTE - My chicken was done around 45 minutes so I removed all 4 pieces from the pans and continued to cook the vegetables until the carrots where tender (about 10 more minutes). What is more comforting then nice warm homemade gumbo?! This is almost completely vegan if you omit the butter and use olive oil instead. I had never made a roux with olive oil so I personally didn't want to risk it. But, I'm sure it is not that much of a difference. This stew is loaded with vegetables and plant based protein. Perfect winter dish in my book! Okra can be a little intimidating (I mean, the fact that I mentioned “slime” can raise some eyebrows), but not to worry, it is quite delicious when cooked right. Okra contains mucilage (like that of a aloe vera plant) and when heated up it increases the mucilages viscosity. It is often used as thickeners for soups or gumbo’s, like this one. However, that is another reason why you won’t ever see a side of “sautéed” okra. Normally it is either fried or added to stews because its slimy like texture can be pretty unpleasant. In this dish, the slime will continue to cook off as you continue to heat the stew and will create a very pleasing and hearty texture! Vegetarian Gumbo
Ingredients: Servings: 6 to 8
Directions:
Its almost Friday! I don't know about all of you, but one of my favorite things to do on a crappy weekend, is cook. I love to take advantage of my time, when I actually find some, and create things that are so second nature to me, that they are almost therapeutic in a way. I have been making lasagna (and lasagna roll-ups) for almost my entire life of cooking, so making these are almost comforting in a way. No fuss of looking at a recipe, no need to search google, and no real measuring even needed. My spice measurements are just estimates, I rarely measure out my spices. So, if you have read my other blog posts, you will know that one of the most repetitive things I may say is, adjust the spices as necessary! Cooking isn’t about measuring, its about creating and tasting! These roll ups make for the perfect meal prep portion, or just a great dinner dish. Some of you may be looking at my “cottage cheese” mixture with skepticism, but rest assured, ricotta will work just as well! I use ricotta occasionally but in my family, cottage cheese was the norm when making lasagna. And when seasoned well, it really doesn't matter which one you use in my opinion. A “MUST” for me when making these is to sauté up some garlic and spinach first, then incorporating it into my creamy mixture. Garlic makes everything better. When making these you want to make sure that you are organized. This can end up being a very chaotic process if you have everything sort of, jumbled around. So make sure to line-up all of your toppings in order and your “rolling space” in front. If you do not have wax paper to lay your noodles on, foil also works. As you will see, I didn't have wax paper, so I had to improvise. Normally roll ups are made with mozzarella cheese spread on top of each noodle before rolling. My vision for food when I am cooking is to make things as healthy as possible, without compromising taste. Now, you can add mozzarella if you would like, but I promise, you won’t even notice its gone. The only cheese used in this dish (besides the cottage cheese), is saved for the topping. Feta Cheese at that! Don't knock it till you try it 😃 Lasagna Roll-Ups (Meatless)
Ingredients: Serving Size: 2 Roll-Ups (makes about 14)
Directions:
I have been wanting to share these for some time now, and today I took advantage of my little bit of downtime to bring you these ever so delicious, Dark Cocoa & Peanut Butter Protein Balls. They take no time at all to make and are the perfect pre/post workout snack. Although, I will warn you, they do get a little messy when forming them with your hands. But its worth it, I promise! For me, Hershey Special Dark Cocoa powder is insanely good. But, if you are not a dark chocolate fan, just regular cocoa powder will do. Also, when picking a peanut butter, make sure you are looking for a natural, no sugar added, peanut butter. You would be surprised at how many ingredients are lurking in your favorite JIFF container. The only ingredients in your peanut butters should be, well, peanuts obviously, and sea salt. Alot of people who have tried “natural” peanut butter often get the kind with no salt, which is fine, but it tends to turn people off because they feel as though it has no flavor.. and they're not wrong. Salt brings out the peanut butter taste and I swear you wont even miss the added sugar. So next time your at your grocery store, check out the options for all natural peanut butter and give it a shot! Now, lets talk about raw honey. Why raw? Raw honey is a unprocessed, unfiltered, and unheated product that contains all the natural vitamins, enzymes and other nutritional elements that make it a pretty obvious choice for a natural sweetener. It can range anywhere from a light golden color, to a dark amber color. However, sometimes raw honey can be CRAZY expensive, so I suggest hitting up your local farmers markets during the summer to get the freshest, and most affordable product. However, in the winter I buy a organic simple truth (kroger brand) for only about 4 dollars. So, look around, read ingredients, and get what you can, when you can! Dark Cocoa & Peanut Butter Protein Balls
Ingredients:
Directions:
Note** Depending on your protein powder, these range from about 110 calories each with 5 grams of protein per piece! I personally use a unflavored, unsweetened protein powder so the sweetness from the honey is just right for me, however feel free to taste test throughout to make sure its good for you. Everyones protein powder is different! Also, I found that its best when you use peanut butter that is not stored in the fridge. The creamer the peanut butter the easier it is to form. For those of you who don’t know, Demetrius has decided to start eating healthier come the first of the year! He wants to make smarter snack choices, utilize the gym more, and most importantly… LEARN MEAL PREP. So, this week I was on a mission to find something tasty and easy that he could cook himself. I then came across these meatballs and he LOVED them. Now, I will give credit where credit is due, so yes he made these all by himself! I may have taste tested a few as well, and they are definitely something we will be making again. We put them over top 1/2 cup cooked brown rice and lots of steamed broccoli on the side. Its important to play around with your different proteins when meal prepping so you aren’t constantly eating chicken. That can get very boring and while we are at it, it isn’t a bad idea to make half your meals vegetarian as well. Meat every day seems a little excessive in my opinion but, that is just that.. an opinion. Along with these I also made my unstuffed Chili Rellenos dish to serve as the vegetarian option this week for whoever needed a fast meal. So with that said, try these meatballs out if you need a super easy meal prep or even just a fast and easy weeknight meal. You wont regret it. Notes: We didn't change much from the original recipe which is linked at the bottom. We also cut this in half to only make 3 to 4 meal prep dishes (the sauce we kept the same measurements for extra). Below is our measurements for that. Honey Sriracha Turkey Meatballs
Servings: 4 Ingredients:
Follow the cooking directions here at eatyourselfskinny.com Ahhh.. kale salads. You are so crunchy, nutritious and colorful. Seriously though, kale will grow on you if you let it. I used to never eat that stuff while also thinking it was the most bitter unpleasant thing on earth. Now, I cant get enough of it. Taste buds CAN change, you just have to allow them to. Your body will crave healthy food just like it does pizza and chicken wings. Ok, maybe not JUST like that but.. your picking up what I’m laying down right? This is a great meal prep idea for a lower carb/vegetarian option and you can pretty much get everything put together while the vegetables are roasting. If I had to guess, I would say I can whip all four of these out in less than 40 minutes. With the exception of making sure the vegetables are completely cooled. Hot steam and salad aren’t exactly friends. So give these a whirl and let me now how you like them! Roasted Vegetable Kale Salad
Ingredients:
Dressing:
Directions:
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About MeHello everyone! My name is Ashlee Beach and five years ago I embarked on a life changing journey. Like most americans, I came from a household where food was cheap, fast and easy. Fresh produce just wasn't on the menu, which caused my relationship with food to be a very love-hate. Now at the age of 27, I am 60 lbs lighter, full of energy, and extremely passionate about my new lifestyle. From my own personal experiences I am here to share with you, delicious recipes, healthy living advice, and positive vibes! Categories
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