A quinoa bowl fit for Fall

The cold weather has arrived which means it's time to turn on the oven and enjoy warm grains and Fall crops. I've talked about my love of roasted brussels sprouts before, so you can imagine how tickled pink I was to see them at the grocery store last week. I roasted up a batch in garlic and lemon juice (recipe here), stir-fried some zucchini, red pepper, onion, and chickpeas and nestled it all into a bed of quinoa. I topped the dish with a generous squeeze of lime juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. The best part was enjoying it all over again for lunch the next day :)

Wishing you tasty meals and happy days,
Rebecca

Pancakes...or something like it.

Happy Thanksgiving y'all! On this beautiful morning I woke up craving pancakes. This never happens and as a result I admittedly have no idea how to make pancakes. Instead of following a recipe I got a little carried away. One thing lead to another, I swapped this for that and that for this, added a dash here and a dash there and all of a sudden I had something that somewhat resembled a pancake...kind of.  It doesn't exactly look like a pancake and doesn't really taste like a pancake either. These cakes are hearty with a lot of texture and while they are thick they aren't what you would call fluffy. Bottom line is that they tasted good and are chocked full of nutritious ingredients.

A note on nutrition: the oats, whole wheat flour, flaxseed and apple bump up the fibre content of this recipe. The ground flaxseed and almonds provide heart healthy fats.

Recipe:
Makes: about 12 small cakes

Ingredients: 
Large flake oats, 1/2 cup
Almond milk (you can use any type of milk you like), 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup
Whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup
Ground flaxseed, 2 Tbsp
Warm water, 3 Tbsp
Apple, diced, 1
Almonds, 1/4 cup
Coconut, 1 heaping Tbsp
Maple syrup, 2 Tbsp
Cinnamon, 1/2 tsp
Baking powder, 1 tsp

Directions:
1. Soak oats in 1/2 cup of almond milk. Ideally you should let them soak for 20 minutes. I'm a tad impatient so I let mine soak for 10 minutes and the earth did not shatter, so that should do.
2. While the oats are soaking, cut an apple into small pieces and cook over medium heat until soft(ish). Depending on the type of pan you use, you may need to add a small amount of oil to the apples to avoiding sticking.
3. Combine the ground flaxseed and water and let sit for about 5 minutes.

4. Place almonds in a bag, take a hammer, and smash the almonds into small pieces (my favourite part!). When the apples are almost finished cooking, add smashed almonds and coconut to the pan.  Remove from heat once the coconut and nuts are toasted and fragrant (just a couple of minutes).

5. Mix flour into the oat mixture.
6. Combine all ingredients into the oat and flour mixture.
7. On medium heat, add a tablespoon of oil to your pan and drop a heaping tablespoon of the mixture onto the pan. Cook until golden brown on both sides, flipping the pancake after about two minutes.
8. Drizzle with maple syrup and enjoy!

Wishing you happy days, tasty meals, and a delightful Thanksgiving,

Rebecca 

Happy dessert

Get ready. Cause I'm about to make you happy.

You know when you want a really delicious dessert but you don't want to leave the house and you don't want to put in any effort and you'd prefer to eat guilt free? Well here it is folks: Apple Maple Coconut Cinnamon Oat-y goodness (that's the official name).

I think I know what's going through your mind...  how good could an apple dessert really be? No sign of pie crust, no ice cream in sight, not even a drizzle of caramel or chocolate. I understand, but it's time you trust me. It tastes a lot like apple crisp but its faster to make, mess-free, and most importantly has a fraction of the sugar.  Plus, it's apple season! Apples are particularly delicious these days so you may as well take advantage :) 

Recipe: 

Serves: 1  (It could be shared into two small portions, but once you take a bite you probably won't want to share. Plan accordingly). 

Ingredients: 

Apple 

Maple Syrup 

Oil/margarine/butter 

Unsweetened shredded coconut 

Cinnamon 

Large flake oats 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. 

Cut an apple into medium sized chunks. 

Drizzle with oil and maple syrup. 

Sprinkle with coconut, cinnamon, and oats. 

Pop in the oven for about 20 minutes or until apples are nice and soft. You may want to give it a little stir half way through. 

Wishing you tasty meals and happy days,
Rebecca

Too hot to cook

Growing up my grandmother's famous excuse for not cooking was that it was simply "too hot to cook." Now, I didn't grow up on a tropical island, houses didn't normally have air conditioning, and some years it seemed like it never topped 25 degrees celcius. However, it was a great excuse to avoid the stove and simply have tea and toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (because apparently it is never too hot for tea and toast). When I'm feeling a little lazy, I dance to my dear nanny's words that it is simply too hot to cook.

However, in all honesty, this month I may as well be living on a tropical island because Toronto has been HOT. Real hot. Too hot to cook hot.  Which fits in perfectly with the Recipe ReDux Challenge this month: Beat the Summer Heat with No Cook Meals. 

Cashew Lemon Creamy Salad Dressing

Makes: about 1 cup of dressing

Recipe: 

3/4 cup cashews

1/2 cup water

1/2 lemon

1 clove garlic

2 basil leaves

1 tbsp fresh cilantro 

1 tsp coconut (optional)

1/2 tbsp Maple Syrup (you can also use honey or agave)

Directions: 

1. Throw cashews and juice from half a lemon (I actually added some more in after, so maybe a little more than half a lemon, depending on how much you like lemon) in a food processor. Process until cashews become smooth. To help the process add water 1 tablespoon at a time. Keep processing. It took about 10 minutes and 1/2 cup of water (8 Tbsp) for my dressing to get the desired consistency. 

2. Add garlic, herbs, coconut, and syrup and process until well blended. 

3. Take a taste test - is it sweet enough? sour enough? garlic-y enough? Take the time to play with the recipe a little bit and add more of whatever it needs. 

4. Once your dressing tastes delicious and is the desired consistency add it to your favourite salad. 

My salad had arugula, corn, match stick carrots, and raisins. I topped it off with smashed cashew pieces.

Before you leave be sure to check out some of the amazing recipes posted by other Recipe ReDuxers.

Wishing you tasty meals and happy days,
Rebecca

Summer Salads

Oh summer days, I love ya, I really do. 

But I've been doing a horrible, horrible job making meals this month. Like, really bad. I've had many nights where supper consisted of hummus, carrots, crackers and a glass of wine. I just can't get myself to spend time in the kitchen. I mean, there has been heat waves (which as a Newfoundlander I am totally unprepared for), extended hours of sunlight, patios screaming my name, sunny parks, and week night outings. 

But really, it's time to add a little pizzaz to my meals. A girl can't do this forever. 

Due to my aversion to the kitchen these days I have been frequenting a cafe near my work for lunch. They have a fabulous sweet potato lentil salad. As I was chowing down the other day I thought "what's wrong with me?! I can make this!". And so I did (with a change or two). It was wonderful and more importantly, quick!

Arugula, roasted sweet potato, lentils, avocado, red onion, and goat cheese - seriously people, this salad is good. 

It's raining right now, so it's the perfect time to spend 20 minutes cooking sweet potato and lentils. I'll pop them in the fridge and use them for a no-cook salad throughout the week. 

Ingredients 

It's a salad - use as much or as little as you like. You are the boss. 

Arugula 

Roasted Sweet Potato 

Cooked green lentils 

Goat cheese

Avocado

Red Onion 

Additions that I am for sure going to try: 

Sunflower seeds

Granola (the original has this, yum!) 

Peaches

Raisins

Herbs - Basil, Dill, Cilantro 

The dressing:

I keep it simple - juice from a fresh lemon and a drizzle of olive oil.

Directions: 

1. Cut the sweet potato into half moon slices. Toss  in olive oil. Bake at 450 F for 15 - 20 minutes. 

2. Rinse a cup of green lentils in cold water. Bring to a boil with three cups of water in a large pot for 15-20 minutes, or until lentils are no longer hard. 

3. Chop all other ingredients and toss together together. Drizzle with lemon and olive oil. 

Wishing you happy days, tasty meals and lots of sunshine!
Rebecca

Friends with barbecues

Ohhh barbecue season, I love you. I really, really do. I love your taste, your smell, your assumption that we will eat outside. I even love chasing after flying napkins, licking mustard off my hand, and awkwardly eating on the grass/curb/wobbly chair.

My apartment building doesn't allow barbecues (I know, super lame) so I am trying to lure my barbecue-owning friends into inviting me over for some fun and tasty times this summer. I promise I will bring some delicious eats to throw on the grill. This week I brought drunken tofu (see picture above), marinated for 20 hours in beer, garlic, ginger, and barbecue sauce. It was delicious. Get the recipe here.

Here's hoping we all get to enjoy a little barbecue on this fine Canada Day weekend!
Rebecca

Sea what you've been missing

Recipe Reduxers have been given the Sea What You've Been Missing challenge this month in hopes of expanding our culinary skills to include nutritious treasures from the sea. With that in mind I got my sea vegetable hat on and decided to skip the japanese restaurant and make homemade sushi.


Sushi is one of my favourite foods however I almost always fill my sushi cravings at Japanese restaurants since it takes a bit of time and patience to make at home (but hey, all good things in life take time and patience, right?). After making these vegetable sushi rolls I have decided that a make-your-own-sushi party is in my near future (regardless of the rice-smooshed-onto-floor mess that I will inevitably face at the end of the night).

The great thing about sushi is that you can add whatever fillings suit your fancy, your budget, and your refrigerator contents.  I used sautéed and roasted veggies but you can also try smoked salmon, raw sushi-grade fish, shrimp, or mango!

Recipe: Asparagus Portabella Sushi Roll

First, decide what you want to fill your sushi with. I chose oven roasted garlic asparagus, sautéed portabella mushrooms, sautéed tofu, cucumbers, and avocado. These can be hot or cold (I prefer cold). 

Next, cook your rice. Make sure you use sushi rice since it has a sticky texture that keeps everything in place. Add uncooked rice to water and bring to a boil (see package instructions for ratio of rice:water). Reduce heat and cover for 15 minutes (do not uncover during this time). Remove rice from heat and let sit, covered, for ten minutes. Meanwhile, mix 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 4 teaspoons of sugar, and 3/4 teaspoon of salt. Pour  mixture over rice in small batches and fold rice until covered. Spread rice on a baking pan and let cool. 

And of course, the feature of this post - Nori! Nori is a thin, dried, seaweed sheet. One sheet of nori contains 1 gram of fibre, 6% Daily Value of Vitamin A, 4% of Vitamin C, and 3%  of Vitamin D. 

Place plastic wrap on top of the bamboo mat and place the nori on top of the plastic wrap. Place the shiny side of the nori down with the dull side facing up.  

Spread a layer of rice over the dull side of the nori.  If the rice is sticking to your hands just run them under cold water. 

Place sushi filling across the middle of the nori. Don't overstuff  - unless, of course, you have a really big mouth :) 

Roll the nori with just the plastic and then finish it off by wrapping the bamboo mat around the roll. To better see how this works check out this instructional video.

With a sharp knife cut the roll into slices. Serve with wasabi, pickled ginger, and soy sauce. 

When possible, choose low sodium soy sauce, or limit the amount you use. Soy sauce has a high amount of sodium which in excess can increase your risk of high blood pressure, dehydrate you, and in my case, cause a serious case of swollen eye lids! 

Check out the recipe redux entries below to find some more recipes that feature small fish (like sardines, anchovies, and smelt) and sea vegetables (like seaweed and kelp). 

Wishing you tasty meals and happy days, 

Rebecca

No-Bake Brownies

Spring is in full force in Toronto and I mean full force.  Sunshine, patios, jackets left at home, people are wearing t-shirts for heavens sake! It's wonderfully unreal (although I do find global warming worrisome). Along with this sunny weather comes bumble bees and maple sugaring. With that in mind, this month's Recipe ReDux Challenge was "Stick with Maple Honey Sweetness" - cooking and baking with maple or honey to add natural sweetness to everything. 

Like any proud Canadian I love maple syrup. Small amounts can transform salad dressings, baked goods, smoothies, even salmon. I do, however, have one word of caution - natural sweeteners, like maple syrup, honey, and agave nectar are not health foods. When comparing maple syrup to granulated sugar they both have about 50 calories in one tablespoon. While some natural sugars have trace minerals it's certainly not a compelling reason to "add a little extra". Enjoy your sweet treats but avoid having too heavy of a hand when adding sugars and syrups. 

While cruising around Pinterest I came across a recipe for Raw Two-Bite Brownies. It immediately shot out of the printer and landed itself on the top of my To-Do List. 

There are only three tablespoons of maple syrup in this recipe, however the dates provide the majority of the sweetness (along with a dose of fibre). 

Recipe: No Bake Brownies

Ingredients:

Almonds, unsalted - 1 cup 

Cashews, unsalted - 1/2 cup 

Ground flaxseed - 1/4 cup 

Alkalized cacao powder (or cocoa powder) - 1 Tbsp 

Shredded coconut, unsweetened - 1 Tbsp 

Maple Syrup - 3 Tbsp 

Dates (or prunes) - 10 

Dark chocolate - 2 oz (about 57 grams) 

Nut butter - 1 Tbsp 

Almond milk (any sort of milk or water will work) - 1- 3 Tbsp 

Vanilla - 1/2 tsp 

Instructions:

1. Throw the nuts and flaxseed into a food processor and process until it turns into a flour. Do not let it process for too long or it will turn into nut butter. We don't want this. 

2. Add every thing except milk to the food processor and process until all the ingredients are well mixed. 

3. Add small amounts of milk at a time until a dough ball forms. It will be obvious. 

4. Roll the dough into small balls (this recipe is rich and full of healthy fats so I don't recommend going bigger than 1 tablespoon of dough per cookie). Flatten to your liking. You will notice a lot of oil on the balls. This is the natural oil from the nuts. You may wish to pat away some of the oil with a paper towel although this is not necessary. 

4. Refrigerate for 1 hour. 

5. Eat, enjoy, and savour your delicious treat. 

Store in the refrigerator or freezer. 

Before you leave take a look below to check out what the other Recipe ReDuxers have whipped together this month.

Wishing you a sunny spring and tasty days,
Rebecca

Cinnamon coconut almond butter

An empty apartment on Saturday morning left me toddling around the kitchen looking for something to delight my palate. Enter homemade cinnamon coconut almond butter.

I'm a nut butter fan. I normally don't take the homemade route but after this batch I hope to start doing so more often. Perhaps it tastes better because of all the love and anticipation that goes into it, or maybe because it's so fresh, either way, it is a delight.

The best part is all the mixing and matching that can take place. You can mix different types of nuts, add spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, and toss in ingredients like coconut, raisins, vanilla, or dark chocolate.

I went for almonds, coconut, and cinnamon. 

After 10 minutes in the food processor, cinnamon and coconut aroma filled my kitchen. I enjoyed my warm nut butter on some whole grain bread, paired perfectly with a hot cup of freshly ground coffee. If only every morning could be a Saturday morning.

A few notes about homemade nut butter: 

- Store it in the fridge 

- It lasts about one month so make small batches

- 1 cup of nuts yields about 1/2 cup of nut butter

Ingredients: 
Almonds - 1 cup
Coconut, shredded, unsweetened - 1 tsp
Cinnamon - 1/2 tsp

Directions: 
Toss into a food processor and process for about 10 minutes.
Scrape sides as needed.

Wishing you tasty mornings and happy days,
Rebecca

Mr. B. Sprout

I'm loving brussels sprouts this season. Sure, these little buggers have a bad name among kids and adults alike but it's time to give them another chance. We all deserve a second chance once in a while, don't ya think?

If my claim of deliciousness isn't enough to convince you to give brussels sprouts a try, perhaps a few fun facts will help.  Just six sprouts have:
- more vitamin C than a medium orange
- almost five grams of fibre
- just 45 calories
- many many more vitamins and minerals that make us feel and look good.

These brussels sprouts were tossed with lemon juice and garlic and roasted for about 30 minutes. Easy. I have some more that I haven't cooked with yet and my goal for this weekend is to find another delicious way to prepare them. Stay tuned for an update and please leave any tips and suggestions.

Preparation is a piece of cake:
1. Rinse sprouts well.
2. Peel off any outer layers that look brown or weathered.
3. Trim off the very bottom of the sprout as this can be tough.
4. Toss in herbs, spices, oil, and/or citrus (I used lemon juice and garlic).
5. Roast in the oven at 400F for about 30 - 40 minutes. You may want to toss them half way through.
6. Et Voila! You did it! (I told you it was easy).

Enjoy,
Rebecca

Oh Martha, you've done it again.

"At the cocktail hour, serve crunchy vegetables complete with their own dip: buttermilk-peppercorn, roasted pepper and eggplant, or toasted curry. Their bowls -- hollowed-out slices of baguettes in pumpernickel, plain, or everything -- are meant to be eaten, too."

http://www.marthastewartweddings.com

Eat like an Egyptian

I'm now a proud Book Club member. Funny thing about that since I'm not a big reader. I'm really good at reading 75% of a book and then losing interest, or more often than not, losing the actual book. Some people can't put a book down because they need to know how it ends.  Not me. I'm quite content not knowing how the story ends. Weird, hey?

When a bunch of my girlfriends decided to start a book club I excitedly jumped on the train. For a few reasons:
#1. Getting together with friends is always fun. I couldn't possibly miss out on that.
#2. A book club is really good motivation to actually finish a book. I work really well with deadlines so finishing the book on time shouldn't be a problem, provided I don't leave it on the subway.
#3. It makes me sound sophisticated and important ... "oh sorry, I can't make it tonight, I have book club"

Last month we read "The Glass Castle" by Jeanette Walls. It was a pretty good book and as a Dietitian I was fascinated by a child's perspective of hunger, but let's get real, this post isn't about the book, this post is about what I ate during book club.

We met after work one day at a quiet downtown restaurant called The Butler's Pantry for some "international comfort foods for the health conscious consumer".

Inspiration struck when I ordered Kosharee, a traditional Egyptian street fair made with green lentils, rice, and tomato sauce. Easy, delicious, healthy.

Of course I went home and immediately googled "Kosharee". I decided not to follow any of the recipes or suggestions associated with this traditional dish and instead used the dish as inspiration for the ingredients in my kitchen.

Recipe: 

Makes about 5 servings

Ingredients: 
Lentils, uncooked, 1 cup
Multigrain rice, uncooked, 1/2 cup (brown rice will also work)
Mushrooms, 10
Yellow onion, 1
Zucchini, 1/2
Garlic, 3 cloves
Tomato Sauce, 1 jar
Vinegar, 1 Tbsp
Cumin, 1/2 tsp
Chili powder, 1/4 tsp
Salt, 1/4 tsp
Fresh parsley, 1 cup

Directions: 
1. Cook rice and lentils
2. Chop veggies and sauté with small amount of oil.
3. Add cooked rice, lentils, and veggies together.
4. Mix in vinegar, spices, and parsley.
5. Warm tomato sauce in saucepan on medium heat.
6. To serve, scoop lentil mixture onto dish and top with tomato sauce.

This dish is incredibly versatile. I'm looking forward to playing with this recipe and changing up the herbs, spices, and veggies for a completely different taste and experience.

Wishing you tasty meals and happy days,
Rebecca

Kale Fennel Salad

Fresh fennel...ever have it? This is my first time. A friend of mine was enjoying some crunchy fennel at work last week and it sparked my curiosity. Once fennel was on my mind I saw it everywhere - fennel pizza, fennel in the grocery store... ok that's about it, maybe "everywhere" was an overstatement.

Some observations on fennel:

- It has a similar texture to celery - crunchy and refreshing. 

- It has a spectacular black licorice aroma and a mild black licorice taste. I really dislike black licorice and I enjoy fennel (this is my proof that the taste is quite mild, so you believe me now, right?).

This is fresh fennel (isn't it pretty?):

I was a little hesitant to have fennel on its own so I decided to pair it with my trusty favourite, Kale.

This salad is full of flavour and tang and is probably not for the faint of heart.

Recipe: 

Ingredients: 
3 cups of kale
1/2 bulb of fennel, sliced thin
1 handful of fresh, chopped parsley*
Juice of half a lemon**
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove of garlic, minced
Ground pepper

* I bet fresh dill would also be great.
**This is a very tangy salad, which I love, but if you're not into extreme tang you may want to reduce the lemon juice to a little less than half a lemon.

Directions: 

1. Remove and discard the middle spine of the kale. Chop the leaves into thin strips. 

2. When preparing fennel remove the tall stalks and eat the bottom bulb. You also have to remove the inner heart of the fennel. For a quick, helpful video on chopping fennel look here. 

3. Combine the kale, fennel, and parsley in a medium bowl. 

4. Mix together lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and pepper. 

5. Pour dressing over salad, toss, and enjoy. 

Go ahead, be crazy, try something new.

Rebecca

Lima Beans

With my vow in place to transition from canned beans to dried beans I hit the grocery store and got up close and personal with some new legumes. Lima beans caught my attention right away and I quickly decided that these lovely white beans would come along on a cooking adventure with me.

Before soaking these little guys I checked out the nutrition facts table (a best practice for all those interested in improving their health) and saw that half a cup of lima beans has 19 grams of fibre. Hold the phone - 19 GRAMS OF FIBRE! That's insane! And it is in fact insane. After some research I realized that a 1/2 cup of dried lima beans has 19 grams of fibre but once soaked they expand and less beans fit into a cup. This was a relief as 19 grams of fibre in one sitting would be tough for any digestive tract to handle.

The Nutrition Facts are impressive - 1/2 cup of cooked lima beans bring about 114 calories, 0 grams of fat, 7 grams of fibre, 8 grams of protein, and just 2 mg of sodium. To summarize:  lima beans are incredibly nutritious, promote good heart health, keep your digestive tract healthy, and will help you feel full for hours after your meal.

Lima  beans have a very unique taste and texture. They have a very mild taste, much like a potato. Since they have a very bland flavour seasoning with herbs, spices, and citrus is a must.

Not having had any lima bean cooking experience I hit the world wide web to see what other folks like to do with their lima beans. I saw a lot of sautéing with tomatoes and spices - so I followed suit and came up with this little recipe:

Recipe:

Prep: Soak lima beans in water overnight or during the work day.

Ingredients:
1 cup lima beans
2 tomatoes, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
1/2 habarnero pepper, chopped*
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 pinches of red chili flakes
black pepper
2 basil leaves, chopped (optional)


Directions:
1. Soak lima beans in water for 8 to 12 hours. Once soaked, rinse, bring to a boil, and let simmer for about an hour or until beans are soft.
2. Once beans are cooked add chopped veggies to a skillet and sauté in a small amount of oil until almost cooked. Add drained lima beans, garlic, red chili flakes, and black pepper. Sauté for about 5 - 7 minutes.
3. Serve and enjoy.

*note: if you have a low spice tolerance omit the habanero pepper.

Wishing you a wonderful week,
Rebecca 

A Fresh Start

This month's Recipe Redux is dedicated to the ever important, ever scrumptious breakfast. In my mind there are two types of breakfasts: the week day morning "oh-man-I-probably-shouldn't-have-pressed-snooze- that-last-time" breakfast and the weekend morning "roll-out-of-bed-nothing-but-time-on-my-side-let's-do-something-special" breakfast.  

I have a few go-to quick and nutritious weekday breakfasts but this is Recipe Redux, it's time to do something special - weekend breakfast it is. 

My wonderful coworker hooked me up with eggs from a small local farm. Look how beautiful they are: 

With these lovely eggs I decided to make an omelette. 

Omelettes are great, not only because of their versatility and taste, but because it's an awesome way to add a serving or two of vegetables to your day. 

I sautéed mushrooms, onions, zucchini, and kale. Piled them high on top of my eggs, held my breath and made the flip. Success. 

I must admit that I enjoy ketchup with eggs. Instead of smearing cheap ketchup all over this beautiful omelette I opted to make bruschetta. For this I combined one clove of garlic, a chopped tomato, a pinch or two of basil and some olive oil.  Simply delightful. 

Recipe: Omelette

Ingredients:  

3 medium eggs

Milk

Pepper

Red Chili Flakes 

Kale

Mushrooms

Zucchini

Red Onion 

Directions: 

1. Cut and sauté veggies. I like to cook the mushrooms and onions first. Once they are nicely browned I add the rest of the veggies. 

2. Scramble eggs with milk, pepper, and red chili flakes. Pour on a separate, oiled, heated, medium frying pan. Cook on low-medium until egg solidifies. 

3. Add sautéed veggies to one side of the egg and carefully and quickly flip the remaining half of the egg over the veggies. This can take practice and patience, but you can do it! Good luck.

4. Let the omelette cook like this for a few minutes, serve and enjoy. 

Tip: If you flip your omelette and your egg or filling needs to be cooked some more pop your frying pan into the over at 300F and bake for 5 to 10 minutes. 

Recipe: Bruschetta

Ingredients: 

Tomato

Garlic

Olive Oil 

Basil 

Directions: 

1. Chop tomato, add one glove of garlic, about 1 Tbsp of olive oil and about 1 Tbsp of basil. Mix. 

2. Top omelette with bruschetta. 

Before leaving, take some time to look through the breakfast recipes below created by other recipe reduxers.

Wishing you a fresh start to your day,    

Rebecca 

Recipe Redux:

I've bean thinking...

Today I'm talking beans.

I'm a big bean eater. It's the main source of protein in my diet and black beans are my absolute favourite. Canned black beans are quick and certainly fulfill my bean needs, however dried beans really are a step up when it comes to taste, texture, and price.  They take some extra prep time but they're well worth it.

Prepping and cooking: 
Dried beans need to be soaked for 8 to 12 hours before cooking. I soak mine overnight or during the work day. They then need to be cooked (boiled) for about 1-2 hours, depending on how much you are making. Yes, this prep time is pretty long, but beans are great leftover so I make a big batch and enjoy throughout the week.

I must admit, at this point in my life I am not a huge planner so I don't use dried beans as much as I would like to, but I sure am going to try to change this....starting today!

Benefits of dried beans:
- no preservatives
- sodium free
- high fibre
- high protein
- delicious
- incredibly inexpensive
- versatile (think stir fry, pizza, salad, soup, anything to do with a tortilla, and yes, even dessert)

If you're looking to learn more about dried beans, peas, or lentils check out this great cooking guide with all the official info.


Supper last night was deliciously simple: every veggie in my kitchen was chopped, sautéed, topped with leftover black beans and sprinkled with sesame seeds. I sautéed the veggies in sesame oil which gave the dish a wonderful asian flavour. I splashed it with a small amount of rice vinegar and then chowed down.

Wishing you great success on all your bean adventures,
Rebecca

It's 2012, let's do this

Happy new year!!! January 2012 is here and I'm happy as pie. My holidays included ocean, family, friends, food, laughter, pictures, and dancing. As wonderful as it was, it's always nice to get back into the swing of things with some reliable routine. 

I love the January vibe. Collectively we move more, eat less, get stuff done, and simply strive to do better. It's the one time of year when we all decide to start over. What's not to like about a new, fresh, hopeful beginning? (answer: nothin' at all).

With holiday indulgence behind me, I am ready to get back in the kitchen and make nutritious, warm, wholesome meals. With a big bushel of kale and a couple of portobello mushrooms in my fridge I got moving. 

Kale Portobello Tacos (with a Tzatziki twist)

Ingredients: 
Portobello mushroom
Red Onion
Kale
Zucchini
Tofu, firm
Whole wheat tortilla, small
Tzatziki
Garlic
Ground black pepper
Chili powder
Red chili flakes
Parmesan cheese, fresh

Recipe: 

Sauté portobello mushrooms and red onion until browned*. Add kale and zucchini*. Sprinkle with garlic, ground black pepper, and chili powder. 

In a separate pan, cook strips of firm tofu until brown on both sides. Sprinkle with ground black pepper, red chili flakes, and garlic. 

Warm a small, whole wheat tortilla on the pan and spread 1 tablespoon of tzatziki down the middle. Add tofu and vegetables, sprinkle with fresh parmesan and enjoy!  

* A couple of important reminders:
1. A lesson from Julia Childs - give your mushrooms space to cook. It makes a major difference in the taste and texture.
2. Take the spine out of your kale  (it can be tough and bitter).

Wishing you a year of happiness, health, and motivation, 

Rebecca