Peppermint Bark

This is my daughters favorite treat around the holidays.  It is incredibly easy to make and it's always a crowd pleaser!

I miss you too!

Ok, I know it's been awhile. I'm sorry, I really am. We've almost got our new food cart up and running and I'm hoping that I'll be regularly posting again soon.. especially since my favorite time of year is here. Farmers markets, flowers, ahh... summer!

Tabbouleh Salad

I love the simplicity of a basic tabbouleh, especially with some hummus and fresh pita, but as I continue on my quest to fill my arsenal with fresh tasting whole grain salads I wanted to come up with something that could stand alone. This is nothing more than a dressed up tabbouleh, great as a side dish yet also good enough to stand alone as a meal.

Healthy Granola Bars

These granola bars are soft and chewy. They're not your typical sugary treat, but they make a good snack. I have a feeling kids would gobble these down without so much as a clue that they're a healthy snack.

Basic Hummus

This is basic hummus. Simple. Good. Food.

Sriracha Garlic Hummus

I'm a slave to the hummus. It's the truth. One of my favorite meals to take to work is a bunch of chopped up vegetables with whatever hummus we have around for dipping. It's light and fresh, and since I work nights it's important my dinner doesn't bog me down and put me into an unwanted food coma. If you know me, you know I love spicy food so it was only a matter or time before this concoction made it's way into my life. Now I'm in love. This will always have a place on hummus making day.

Kalamata Hummus

My husband is a fiend for olives. While I was on a recent hummus making mission he requested a Kalamata Hummus, and this is it, flavorful without being overbearing.

I'll send him your thanks. 

Roasted Red Pepper Balsamic Hummus

We love the hummus. Seriously, when I buy a container it's gone in a day, two days max. I hate spending $5 or $6 on something I can make for a couple of dollars in ingredients so I'm writing off store bought hummus, with the exception of the rare, but very real, hummus emergency of course.

One Month

Hello Whiskers!
It's been a month now that my family and I have been eating a 99% (we allow ourselves one cheat per week) plant based, whole foods, diet. Yes, this means vegan, but never fear, I promise not to spend my time preaching to you. Some pounds have been lost and we're enjoying the new foods we've been creating. I often feel like people don't want to hear about the "boring" meals we eat every day, but more and more I find my co-workers wondering what looks and smells so good. So, I'm going to start giving you what I've got. If there are things you love, let me know. If there are things you don't love, well.. suck it. Just kidding, let me know. I'd like to give you what you're looking for here.

Zucchini Muffins

I love zucchini bread, so why not zucchini muffins? They're appropriately portioned and portable, what more can I ask for?! Well, if you were going to say they should also be moist, delicious, and full of flavor then we've hit the proverbial nail on the head.

Chocolate Chips Ahoy!

For days I was craving something sweet and I just couldn't quite put my finger on what was going to satisfy. Of course it was sometime around 3am when I realized what it needed to be, and this was it. The picture is bad, but these cookies are awesome! They have great flavor and remain soft yet crisp. It's too bad they're gone, because I could really go for one right about now!

Cranberry Currant Granola

Granola.

Not just for hippies anymore.

Brown Rice Salad With Soy Ginger Dressing

I thought this would be another delightful cold salad I could keep in the refrigerator and pack for lunch several days in a row. Then I put it out onto the dinner table to see if I could get the family to try it. Well, let's just say this was a definite success in our new foray into a plant based whole foods diet. Most of it was gone the first night and what was left disappeared sometime in the early morning hours the following day. I'm not complaining.

Soy Ginger Dressing

This dressing is so awesome I put it on everything for a straight week and I'm still not tired of it!!

Sundried Tomato Polenta (Slow Cooker)

I certainly do love me some polenta. This is super easy and uses the slow cooker (a.k.a my new best kitchen friend) so I'm extra excited about it. I made this quite awhile ago so it's veggie, not vegan, I'll update you when I have a dairy free alternative.

 

 

Hello Whiskers!!

My husband and I watched an interesting documentary on Sunday night called "Forks Over Knives." In short, it talked about the health benefits of a plant based whole foods diet. In an amazing turn of events my husband, the man who prefers his meals to be meat with a meat side, suggested we try it. I'd like to think I hid my surprise well. Then I promptly agreed, we should try it. So, for the next 60 days we've committed to this eating lifestyle; No animal products and no processed food, lots more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. I'm excited about the healthy change and I'm also excited to learn and try an entirely new way of cooking. I apologize in advance for the little break you may see in my posts, but I promise I'll be coming up with something delicious soon!!

Curried Quinoa Salad

I've been working so much lately that keeping these grain salads in the refrigerator has been more helpful than I ever would have thought! This is a simple Quinoa salad, the first of many I'm sure. I enjoyed this over a bed of baby spinach for dinner every night this week!

Breakfast Baguettes

I saw a picture of something like these on Pinterest one day and decided I needed to give it a go, I never looked at the original recipe, but these turned out great! And they're like choose your own adventure food.. the filling options are endless! We had them for breakfast on Valentine's Day :)

Wannabe Chicken Tagine

Tagines originated in North Africa and are named for the special pot in which they are made. The Moroccan Tagines (or more correctly Tajines) are slow cooked stews. Also typically made in the tagine pot, they often use less desireable pieces of meat because the process makes them so tender. This version is not made in a special pot, nor does it take long at all to cook, but it sure is delicious. As my first journey into the world of tagines I'm happy with it, and now I'm quite interested in exploring a more traditional version.

Farfalle with Creamy Red Pepper Sauce

This roasted red pepper sauce is simple and subtle with plenty of flavor. It comes together really fast and would make an excellent weeknight meal.

How to Roast a Pepper

Have you ever wondered how to roast your own peppers? It might literally knock your socks off when you see just how simple it is.

Veggie Veggie Dip

I know this looks like guacamole, but it's not. It's beans! That's right, I said beans. I'm pretty excited about this super simple edamame bean dip. It's simple and would make an easy throw together item for a potluck or work function.

Farro's Garden

Farro is a pretty cool grain, This was my first time using it and I'm very excited about the results and the possibilities. It cooks up to a great size for a cold salad and has a subtle nutty flavor. This salad is really just a bunch of things I like thrown into a bowl, but it's definitely something I'm happy to eat several days in a row.

Crowd Pleasing Chili (Slow Cooker, or not)

For some reason I always associate the Super Bowl with a bunch of junk food and a pot of chili. Since we're all quite capable of finding our own junk food, and I'm anxious to try more things in the slow cooker, I thought I'd try a simple chili. This is mild enough for everyone yet full of flavor, I'll go ahead and call it a home run.

Greek Rice Salad

In an effort to stick stick to my guns about  keeping quick healthy meals in the refrigerator this awesome brown rice salad was born.

Curried Chicken (Slow Cooker)

Apparently I needed a reminder about how freaking awesome the slow cooker can be. This curried chicken is not only easy and delicious, but it's really beautiful as well.

Marinated Flank Steak Tacos

We just got done with our first, and potentially only, snow for the winter and my brilliant daughter thought it was time for a taste of summer. Marinated flank steak with grilled onions and bell peppers with a simple corn salsa and some whole grain tortillas.

Winter Corn Salsa

Sometimes you just need a taste of summer in the dead of winter. This is a simple corn salsa that you can make with ingredients available year round.

Asian Style Barley Salad

In an effort to keep quick healthy meals readily available I'm trying to build up my arsenal of cold salads. This was my first attempt with barley and I'm really happy with it. This will definitely be a recurring item.

Coconut Chocolate Bars

You love coconut? You love chocolate? Well then, these are the treats for you!

 

Tequila Lime Chicken

I came up with this for a late summer camping trip, but we were so busy playing in the sun, and already had so much good food, that I never got around to making it.  In what might be an attempt to beat the gray winter days we've been keeping it light and fresh around our house lately and this certainly fit the bill. Pair it up with some Cilantro-Lime Rice or throw it in a tortilla with some grilled onions and peppers for fajitas, either way this is a keeper. It's good out of a pan and it will be spectacular on the grill.

Cilantro-Lime Rice

This is a simple and versitile side dish. Put it with anything you like, but I think it goes well with my Tequila Lime Chicken. 

Slow Cooker Lentils with Poached Egg

Ahhh.. Lentils. So good for you and so filling. This is a simple dish that lends itself to a nice warm breakfast or dinner. This isn't the most flattering picture, but it's really beautiful in person.

How to Poach an Egg

To poach eggs:

In a deep pan or skillet bring about 2 inches of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low. Break the egg into a measuring cup or small glass. Hold the cup close to the surface of the water and slip the egg into the water. Cook until egg whites are set but the centers are still soft, about 3-4 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.