Tag Archives: fruits and vegetables

What I Ate Wednesday #44

Posted on February 8, 2012 | 5 Comments

Another week, another What I Ate Wednesday. As always, thanks to Jenn for hosting the link party. In honor of this month’s “Love your veggies” theme, I’ve got lots of colorful stuff to share. Not that that’s so different from usual, but hey…

As my internship gets closer and closer, I’m realizing that if I don’t take a few days to enjoy my time off, I’ll regret it, so I spent Tuesday catching up on stuff around the house and then going shopping with my sister. It was so gorgeous out (50 degrees and sunny—crazy), it was hard to stay inside! Here’s what I ate between outings…

Breakfast: Steel cut oats w/ chia seeds, plum & peanut butter

blurry breakfast

Lunch: Greens w/ roasted veggies, tempeh, sprouts,  balsamic; toast w/ cottage cheese & nutritional yeast

Snacks: Fruit; lazy person’s hot chocolate (skim milk heated in the microwave + cocoa powder & stevia) topped w/ frothed milk

Dinner: Kabocha red lentil soup (inspired by Mama Pea) w/kale underneath and goat cheese on top; Ezekiel English muffin w/ Trader Joe’s lentil masala dip & smoked garlic spread my aunt made

Snack: unpictured drink (gin + club soda+ lemon & lime juice) at writers’ group; banana

What’s veggies are you loving lately? 

For more WIAW from other bloggers, visit Peas & Crayons.

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In my arsenal

Posted on February 6, 2012 | 2 Comments

As some of you who’ve been reading a while know, I’ve got a whole list of cold-fighting weapons I turn to when I feel something coming on. One of my favorites is green juice, but forking over eight bucks a pop can be rough on the wallet, so I tend to only buy it when I’m desperate for a last-ditch pick-me-up. Eventually I’ll get a juicer, but I have other priorities right now.

So you can imagine my curiosity when I saw this Super Green Drink Powder at Trader Joe’s not too long ago. While it’s not particularly new, it’s new to me. After a few weeks of talking myself out of trying it, I finally picked up a container last time I was there. When I woke up on Sunday morning feeling a little under the weather (a lot of fun but late nights recently, too much work, not enough rest, etc), I was so glad I had it. Though I don’t believe in miracles, I do believe that a mega-dose of nutrients can help in times of depletion…

The nutrition stats are not too shabby either…

Though I just mixed this with water and drank it down before rushing out the door, I imagine it will be fantastic in smoothies. We’ll see if it helps me feel better, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed. A little optimism goes a long way!

Do you have any secret weapons? Are you a fan of drink powders? 

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Eating the Rainbow

Posted on January 29, 2012 | Leave a comment

This has been a busy Sunday. Even though I was feeling a little faded (though not enough to regret that second drink)‚ I hit the ground running for a head-clearing workout and more apartment hunting. I’m not looking to actually move to another place for a couple months, but since I have the time now, I’ve been taking advantage of it.

Dorky as it sounds, I do try to practice what I preach when I tell people to “eat the rainbow”—fruits and vegetables, though, not Skittles. For breakfast I made steel-cut oats with chia seeds, pumpkin, apple and pumpkin pie spices (topped with peanut butter for protein and healthy fats). Why don’t I made steel cut more often? Yes, they take longer, but they’re so worth it. It’s also easy to just make a big batch and separate it into single servings to reheat later in the week.

For a late lunch, I enjoyed a 21-vegetable soup and a gorgeous nicoise salad with tuna. Winter produce can be a little sad, but there was so much going on here that it all added up to a very satisfying—and colorful—meal.

Do you try to “eat the rainbow?” What are some of your favorite ways to add color to your plate?

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Slow Cooker Eggplant Chickpea Stew

Posted on January 13, 2012 | 6 Comments

When I had no cooking gas last week, I decided to get reacquainted with my slow-cooker by making this eggplant chickpea stew. All I did, honestly, was throw in a bunch of ingredients I had that needed to get used up that I thought would taste good together. Turns out I was onto something—this was great! I served it with steamed kale, brown rice and a little goat cheese on top. You can also add other veggies like roasted cauliflower, like I did when I had leftovers for lunch.

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 eggplants, cubed
  • 1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained
  • 1 15-oz can crushed or diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1 green onion, chopped
  • 5 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2-3 drops liquid smoke
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • red pepper flakes (optional)
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cups water

Directions:

  1. Combine ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on high ~4.5 hours.
  2. Serve hot

Do you have a favorite slow cooker recipe? 

tk

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Easy Being Green

Posted on January 6, 2012 | 2 Comments

Still no cooking gas. I had a bunch of vegetables that needed to get cooked while they were still good, so I steamed up what I could in the microwave. Monochromatic lunches are what happen when you’re too cheap to do takeout.

Brown rice w/ brussel sprouts, kale, broccoli, bok choy and edamame

This was actually pretty good—I ended up adding Garlic Gold nuggets, a little soy sauce and slices from the rest of an avocado I cracked open yesterday. Weird, yes, but satisfying.

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What I Ate Wednesday #29

Posted on October 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

Another Wednesday, another WIAW post. To see more from other bloggers, visit Peas & Crayons.

Today was another hot yoga day. I woke up feeling like this: 

…and felt like myself again by the time the hour had passed. 

Um, anyway…

Today was all about work and school projects. There have been some big changes in my life recently, and I’ve just been doing my best to just hold on for the ride and keep looking forward. For better or worse, this happens to entail a lot of typing. That said, it’s especially important to make time for things like yoga (and exercise in general—good for the body and brain) and good food.

After getting home from class and blearily making a salad comprised of little bits of everything in my fridge, I realized I still needed some kind of grain, and popcorn seemed like the perfect solution. It also gave me a good excuse to try the brown paper bag trick I’d been curious about. The verdict? Success! How did it take me so long to give this a shot?  It was the perfect thing to enjoy while working on some super-fun Biochem flashcards…

Breakfast: Pre-yoga oats with banana, flax and cocoa powder, topped with PB

ugly but good

Lunch: Smoked salmon with goat cheese, tomato, and roasted pepper on an Ezekiel English muffin; a side of veggies (kale, roasted tomato, eggplant, and broccoli) 

Snack: Plain yogurt with a chopped plum and cereal

Dinner: Hastily thrown-together massaged kale salad with seitan and the same veggies from lunch

Snack: Popcorn

How was your Wednesday? What was the best thing you ate? 

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Ingredient of the Week: Pumpkin

Posted on October 25, 2011 | 3 Comments

Welcome to another Ingredient of the Week. Today is all about pumpkin, one of the most-loved food blog ubiquities.

This time of year, it’s hard to  avoid all the pumpkin-themed food porn floating around the internet, but for a good reason: This fruit (yes, pumpkin in a fruit) is both delicious and nutritious.

In one half-cup serving of pumpkin puree, you get:

  • 40 Calories
  • 0.5 g Fat
  • 10 g Carbohydrate
  • 3 g Fiber
  • 4 g sugar
  • 1 g protein
  • 380% your daily Vitamin A
  • 8% Vitamin C
  • 8% your daily iron needs

My friend Lauren recently asked if I wanted to partake in a “30 squash recipes in 30 days” challenge, and while I haven’t been officially taking part, pumpkin does count as squash, and the past few days have definitely included that.

Some of my favorite pumpkin uses include oatmeal…

…black bean and pumpkin soup…

…smoothies…

cheesy kitchen pic

and in brownies…

Take one box of brownie mix (I used Trader Joe’s Chocolate Truffle Brownie Mix) and one 15-oz can of pumpkin puree, and you mix them together. Bake as indicated on the box minus 5 minutes. You end up with perfectly moist, chocolatey brownies that oddly don’t even taste like pumpkin.

I’ve also been wanting to experiment with a pumpkin-based macaroni-and-cheese dish, mostly to see what happens.

While I can’t say I  like to condone “hiding” fruits and vegetables, these kinds of recipes are a great way to up the nutrient profile in a treat without feeling like you’re “healthifying” it too much.

What’s your favorite way to eat pumpkin? 

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Oven-Dried Tomatoes

Posted on October 20, 2011 | 4 Comments

After seeing a super-easy recipe for oven roasted tomatoes on A Full Measure of Happiness recently, I knew I had to try them. I’d attempted a batch a few years ago and was really disappointed, so it was high time for another try.

I also may have been having issues settling down to study for that night’s exam (which seemed to actually go okay), and as I’ve mentioned, cooking is my favorite means of procrastination.

Oh, Advanced Proteins, Fats & Carbs—you slay me...

Seriously, this was so easy—all you need is tomatoes, salt and pepper, and a long stretch of time (a marathon at-home study session was perfect).

I took a few minutes to seed and slice them into thin pieces and then left them in the oven at 250 for a long, long time (about 5 hours). 

When they were done, they looked like this. 

I have plans for these little guys. Aside from salads and sandwiches, I think they’ll need to make an appearance in a sauce or pasta dish of some kind. Okay, now I’m starting to sound like some creepy-ass talent manager, I’ll stop.

Do you like dried tomatoes? What’s your favorite way to use them?  

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Shortcut Apple Pie for One

Posted on October 15, 2011 | 3 Comments

So I know posted my mom’s apple pie recipe a few weeks ago, but sometimes baking a whole pie is just not in the cards.

First, you have to prep everything and wait while it bakes and cools. There’s also the fact that while apple pie makes a great once-in-a-while treat, the fat and calories in the crust don’t give you a whole lot of nutritional bang for your buck.

The other night I finally tried out something I’ve been meaning to get around to for freaking ever. This snack (which could stand in for breakfast as well) combines the good stuff about apple pie and bypasses the oven—and the crust. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 apple, chopped
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp raw oats

Directions:

  1. Mix ingredients in a small bowl. I did this in a mixing bowl but you can do it in the one you plan to cook it in.
  2. Place mixture into microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high 2-3 minutes or until apples are soft and oats have absorbed some of the liquid from the apples.
  3. Add granola or other toppings.

I topped mine with some cottage cheese (no-salt added) because I needed some protein, but this would be great on its own or eaten with yogurt or vanilla ice cream or even milk. I admit, this photo is super-ugly, but it tasted so good, I don’t care. I’ll definitely be making this again.

Do you have a favorite shortcut dessert? 

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