Mediterranean Stuffed Mini Peppers- Two Ways

These mini peppers are the perfect pre-game appetizer, a filling snack or as a delicious side dish. They can me made hot or cold. First way: Roasted Stuffed Peppers 

Ingredients:

6 mini bell peppers, rinsed, halved and seeded 

2-3 tablespoons hummus 

1 tablespoon chopped olives

2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese 

parchment paper or cooking spray 

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees then placed the halved peppers face down on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or lined with parchment. Bake for 10 minutes. Flip over and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from over and spread with 1/2-1 teaspoon hummus (depending on size of your pepper), top with 1/2 teaspoon chopped olives and 1 teaspoon cheese. Return to the oven and bake for another 5 minutes, remove and serve. 

Make 6 pepper halves, 6 servings 

Serving Size: 1 pepper halve Calories 47 Protein 1 g Carb 3 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 1 g Fat 3 g Saturated fat <1 g Sodium 213 mg

Second way: Chilled Stuffed Peppers 

Ingredients: 

6 mini bell peppers, rinsed, halved and seeded

2-3 tablespoons hummus 

1 tablespoon chopped olives 

1 tablespoon diced cucumber 

2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese 

parchment paper or cooking spray 

Directions: 

Place peppers on a plate, cut side up. Spread with 1/2-1 teaspoon hummus (depending on size of your pepper), top with 1/2 teaspoon chopped olives, 1/2 teaspoon cucumber and 1 teaspoon cheese and then serve. Chill in the fridge if not serving immediately. 

Make 6 pepper halves, 6 servings 

Serving Size: 1 pepper halve Calories 47 Protein 1 g Carb 3 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 1 g Fat 3 g Saturated fat

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Cranberry Pecan Quinoa "Stuffing"

 

Last year I tried cauliflower and this year I gave quinoa a whirl for a “stuffing” recipe. These simple ingredients combine to create a dish that has all sorts of flavors, textures and nutrients! Wonderful as a side holiday side dish or stir in some protein like lentils or chopped chicken to make it a meal. 

Ingredients: 

2 cups chopped celery

1 cup chopped onion 

2 cups chopped carrots 

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon margarine or butter 

3 cups cooked quinoa 

1/4 cup chopped pecans 

1/4 cup dried cranberries 

1 tablespoon Morton Nature’s Season Seasoning blend (or your favorite seasoning) 

¼ teaspoon sage (optional) 

salt and pepper to taste 

Directions: 

Cook quinoa according to package directions. In the meantime, chop the celery, carrots and onion and add to a large pot or skillet coated with one tablespoons of margarine/butter. Cover and cook on medium heat stirring occasionally until tender, 7-10 minutes. Add the cooked quinoa, the last teaspoon of margarine/butter until melted. Sprinkle with the seasoning, sage, pecans and cranberries and cook for another 2-3 minutes until warmed through. 

Makes about 7 cups, 14 servings 

Serving size: 1/2 cup Calories 93 Protein 2 g Carb 14 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 4 g Fat 5 g saturated fat 1 g Sodium 396 mg

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Sweet and Spicy Cucumber Salad

Just a few simple ingredients combine to create this delicious side salad that is low in fat and calories but big on flavor! 

Ingredients: 

2 cups sliced cucumbers

2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar 

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

1/2 teaspoon Tajin seasoning (a chili lime seasoning blend) 

Directions: 

Add the cucumbers to a small to medium sized bowl. Pour the rice vinegar and lemon juice over them and the sprinkle with the seasoning. Toss to coat and serve. Chill if not serving immediately. 

Makes 2 cups,  4 servings 

Serving size 1/2 cup Calories 21 Protein 5 g Carb 5 g Fiber 1 g Sugars 4 g Fat 0 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 314 mg

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Honey Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

 

This buffalo cauliflower works great as an appetizer, snack or side dish!

Ingredients:

1 medium sized head of cauliflower, cut into florets
¼ cup buffalo sauce (I used Sweet Baby Rays brand)
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
1 T gluten free oat flour or all purpose flour
salt to taste
cooking spray or parchment paper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Whisk together the buffalo sauce, honey, canola oil, garlic salt and flour in a medium sized bowl. Dip the cauliflower florets to coat with the sauce mixture and spread them out on a baking pan lined with parchment paper or coated with cooking spray. Bake 15 minutes, flip the florets over and then another 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned

Makes 4 servings

Serving size: ¼ recipe Calories 92 Protein 3 g Carb 15 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 8 g Fat 4 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 434

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Cauliflower Stuffing

Lower in carbs and higher in fiber, you won’t miss the bread in this flavorful veggie-based stuffing!

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped celery

2 cups chopped onion

2 cups chopped carrots

2 tablespoons margarine or butter

1 large head of cauliflower, chopped

2 cups chopped crimini or button mushrooms

1/2 cup low sodium chicken or vegetable broth

2 teaspoons Morton Nature’s Season Seasoning blend (or your favorite seasoning)

½ teaspoon sage

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Coat the pot with one of the tablespoons of margarine/butter, add celery, onions, and carrots and sauté until just before tender about 5-7 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cauliflower and stir in the last  tablespoon of margarine/butter until melted. Pour in the broth, sprinkle with the seasoning and sage and simmer until the veggies are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring frequently.

Makes about 7 cups, seven servings

Serving size: 1 cup Calories 86  Protein  3 g Carb  10 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 5 g Fat 3 g saturated fat 0 g Sodium 490 mg  

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Brunch Style Cauliflower Fried “Rice”

Ingredients:

1/2 package Trader Joe’s  Cauliflower Fried Rice (or other frozen cauliflowers rice blend)

1/4 cup liquid egg whites 

5 sliced cremini  mushrooms

1 tablespoon slivered almonds

1 teaspoon olive oil to coat the pan 

sprinkle with soy sauce and Tjoes mushroom unami seasoning

Directions:

Combine all in medium sized pan on medium-high heat and sautée for about 5 minutes until golden brown (I added the egg whites about 2 minutes into cooking)

Makes 1 serving

Serving size about 2 cups  Calories 230  Protein 12 g  Carb 18  g  Fiber 6 g Sugars 7 g Fat 14 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium  280  mg (not including soy sauce or seasoning)

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Recipe ReDux Post # 73 Mexican Style Cucumber Boats

August Recipe ReDux theme is “Crunchy Snacks!”  When I think of crunchy snacks-chips, pretzels, popcorn come to mind, yet this time I wanted to try create a different kind of snack.  Raw veggies pack a healthy crunch and I had some cucumbers in the fridge, so I decided to start with those.  I wanted to make a heartier snack so I filled tried my luck at a Mexican themed cucumber boat by filling them with some black bean dip from Trader Joes that I had bought recently and have been wanting to sample.  Topping them with some tomatoes, corn, olives and cheese worked perfectly and the recipe came together nicely. These are a great appetizer, afternoon snack, or a few of them could work for a quick lunch too.  I hope you will try them out along with all the other snacks developed by the Recipe ReDux group.

Ingredients:

3 Persian cucumbers, ends trimmed, halved and seeded (makes 6 “boats”)
6 tablespoons black bean dip (I used Trader Joes brand)

2 tablespoons chopped black olives
2 tablespoons cooked corn
2 tablespoons finely diced tomato

2 tablespoons low fat shredded cheese

Directions:

Spoon about 1 tablespoon black bean dip into each cucumber half, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon each of corn, tomatoes and olives. Top each with one teaspoon of cheese and serve. Chill if not serving immediately.

Makes 6 servings

Serving Size 1 boat: Calories 45 Protein 2 g Carb 7 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 2 g Fat 1 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium 156 mg

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Recipe ReDux Post # 69 Greek Pasta Salad

The Recipe ReDux for April is centered around perfect picnic foods.  Being that April 23rd is Picnic Day, we were challenged to developed picnic worthy healthy recipes. I chose to do a pasta salad since it is a delicious take along food and works well as a side or a main meal.  I had been wanting to try some red lentil gluten free pasta I bought at Trader Joes recently so this was the perfect opportunity, and it was quite tasty!  Regular pasta works well in the recipe too and the combo of olives, sundried tomatoes and feta cheese in a light fresh dressing is a winner. I hope you will try it out along with the other great picnic foods created by the Recipe Redux group!

Ingredients

2 cups cooked and cooled pasta (preferably penne, spirals or bowties, I used Trader joes red lentil pasta, which is gluten free)

¼ cup chopped kalamata olives

¼ cup chopped sundried tomatoes

¼ cup low fat crumbled feta cheese

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 Tablespoons olive juice

1 Tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar or red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoons olive oil

spinach/chopped cucumbers (optional, for garnish)

 Directions:

Add the pasta, olives and sundried tomatoes to a medium sized bowl.  In a small bowl whisk together the lemon juice, olive juice, vinegar and olive oil.  Pour the dressing over the pasta mixture and toss well to coat. Fold in the feta cheese.  Chill if not serving immediately.  Can be served with spinach and chopped cucumbers for garnish.

Makes 3 cups, 6 servings

Serving size: 1/2 cup Calories 200 Protein 6 g Carb 17 g Fiber 2  g Sugars  3 g Fat 5 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium 205  mg

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Recipe ReDux Post # 64 Festive Sautéed Brussel Sprouts with Tomatoes

November’s Recipe ReDux is “Naturally Colored Treats and Trimmings” and the challenge was to create a sweet or savory dish centered around the colors of the season.  I decided to go with savory and have wanted to create a new Brussels sprout side dish for awhile, so I knew I had the green color right there. When brainstorming about the red I thought I’d try tomatoes since it seemed like an interesting combo and the result was a simple and quick dish that successfully relies a lot on the flavor of these beautifully paired red and green veggies. I hope will try it out this holiday season along with many of the other dishes of naturally festive hues created by the talented Recipe ReDux crew!

Ingredients:

10 ounces cups of  raw Brussels sprouts- stems trimmed and halved   
1 tablespoon olive oil

¾ cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes
salt, pepper, garlic salt

Directions:

Cook the Brussels sprouts until almost done- they can be cooked by either boiling them in a pot of water, steaming in a pyrex dish in an half inch of water for about 4 minutes. Drain the cooked Brussels add them to a medium-large pan coated with the olive oil and sauté on medium high heat until starting to brown, about 3-4 minutes Then put in the tomatoes and continue to sauté for another 1-2 minutes until the tomatoes have softened.  Serve with salt /garlic and pepper to taste.

Makes 2 1/2 cups (5 servings)

Serving size: ½ cup Calories 53 Protein 2 g Carb 5 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 1 g Fat 3 g saturated fat 0 g Sodium 11 mg (not including salt/garlic salt)

 

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Recipe ReDux Post # 61: Bacon N’ Egg Breakfast Fried Rice

Recipe ReDux for August is “Rise and Shine with a Savory Breakfast” and as the title implies we were challenged to create a savory, “dinner inspired” breakfast with our own healthy spin. This was a true challenge for me because I tend to like something neutral or sweet for breakfast and it forced me to think outside the box, which was great!  I happened to have some instant brown rice in the freezer, along with some turkey bacon and eggs, so I decided to try my luck at a breakfast style fired rice. I combined those simple three ingredients along with a little butter and green onion and it came out surprisingly delicious.  A few other bonuses are: its easy to make, reheats well for leftovers (so go ahead and double or triple the batch!), not to mention it has a good amount of protein, includes a whole grain and is low in fat.  So I’d say it’s a winner and I hope you will try it along the other savory breakfast creations brought to you by the talented RecipeReDux bloggers!

Ingredients:

1.5 cups cooked brown rice (I used Trader Joes instant microwavable)

1/3 cup diced green onion   
1/2 cup chopped turkey bacon  (fully cooked variety, I used  Trader Joes, nitrate free peppered variety)
1 teaspoon margarine or butter, divided in half
1 egg

salt and pepper to taste

shredded cheese for garnish

Directions:

Begin cooking the rice according to package directions. While the rice is cooking, add ½ teaspoon butter/margarine, the turkey bacon and the green onion to a large skillet, wok or flat saucepan and sauté on medium to high heat for 3-5 minutes stirring constantly (until slightly browned.) Set aside. Whisk the egg in a small bowl, and add it to the pan coated with another 1/2 teaspoon butter/margarine and scramble for 2-3 minutes. Add in the rice, bacon and onions and  cook for about 3-4 minutes until rice is lightly browned and the mixture is warmed through.

Makes 2 cups, 4 servings

Serving size:  ½ cup Calories  130 Protein 6  g Carb 18 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 1  g Fat  4 g Saturated fat  1 g Sodium  160 mg  

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Cranberry Guacamole

A few weeks ago a was sent this lovely serving bowl and some dried cranberries from the Cranberry Institute, and was encouraged to make a fun recipe for Spring.  I am fortunate to be one of their Cranberry Bog Bloggers and took advantage of the opportunity and decided I wanted to make some sort of fun dip to fill that awesome serving bowl.  I came up with this super delicious cranberry guacamole recipe that I have been saving for Cinco de Mayo, and here it is!  You will be amazed at how cranberries can change your guacamole from being just ordinary to extraordinary!  I hope you will try it out for this Friday's fiesta or anytime soon, enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 small avocados or 1 large, peeled, pitted and mashed

½ of small jalapeno pepper or ¼ of a large, diced

juice from ½ of a lime

1 tablespoon of finely chopped cilantro

a dash or two of garlic salt

1/4 cup dried cranberries

(additional salt to taste)

Makes 1.5 cups, 12 servings

Directions:

Add all the above EXCEPT the cranberries to a food processor and puree until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl, stir in the cranberries and serve. If you do not have a food processor, just be sure to chop the cilantro/jalapeno very fine, mash the avocado well and mix all the ingredients together with a spoon in a small bowl.

Serving size: 2 tablespoons Calories 40  Protein <1 carb="" g="" span="" style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  4 g  Fiber  1.5 g Sugars 3 g Fat 2.5 g Saturated fat <1 1="" g="" mg="" nbsp="" o:p="" sodium="">

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Spring Veggie Recipe Round Up

Now that we are officially a few weeks into Spring,  I thought I'd share some of my favorite recipes highlighting veggies of the season. Enjoy!

Simple Roasted Asparagus



Roasted Cauliflower Salad



Broccoli Smashed Potatoes






Cauliflower "Faux" Sotto




Broccoli Salad




Spinach Artichoke Dip

Sesame Asparagus

Vegetarian Antipasto Salad

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Recipe ReDux Post # 55 Cauliflower Mushroom Taco Filling

February Recipe Redux theme is Taco Tuesday!! So as you can guess, we were encouraged to develop a creative taco recipe :)   It is my belief that that the world can always use more vegetarian taco options so I decided to develop one to add to the mix!  I used two of my favorite veggies as a base -cauliflower and mushrooms, and simply sauteed them with some onions and basic spices and the result was really delicious.  Caulifower often has a potato-like texture, and mushrooms can be somewhat “meaty” in mouth feel so these two veggies worked very well as the filling to replace potatoes and meat, which are two popular types of taco fillings. This filling is very versatile and works well in tortillas, lettuce wraps, atop a salad or even as a yummy veggie side dish.  You can add beans, cheese or your favorite meat to pump up the protein.  I hope you will try it and also check out some of the other great taco ideas from the Recipe ReDux group!

Ingredients:

5 cups chopped raw cauliflower florets

4 cups chopped Portobello mushrooms

1 cup chopped white onion

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ tablespoon chili powder

½ tablespoon ground cumin

salt to taste (optional)

Directions:

After chopping up all the veggies add the mushrooms and the onions to a large pan coated with the tablespoon olive oil and sauté on medium high heat, stirring occasionally,  until starting to brown (about 5 minutes).  While the mushrooms and onions are cooking, steam the cauliflower al dente in a pot of shallow boiling water or in a microwave-safe dish in 1 inch of water (covered) for about 4 minutes.  Drain the cauliflower and add it to the pan with the mushroom-onion mixture. Add the cumin and chili powder, mix well to coat the veggies and continue to heat for about 4-5 minutes until lightly browned and tender. Add salt to taste if desired and serve.  This works great with tortillas, lettuce cups, or mixed in with black beans atop a salad or as a burrito bowl with beans, rice and cheese.

Make 5 cups 5 servings

Serving size: 1 cup  Calories  90 Protein 4 g Carb 13 g  Fiber 3 g Sugars 5 g Fat 3 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium  40 mg

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Recipe ReDux Post # 51 and Gabby's Eats: Fabulous Fall Veggie Bowl

“Plant Power Protein Bowls” is the October theme for the Recipe ReDux Challenge and us bloggers were encouraged to put together our own nutritious and delicious plant based, protein packed bowl.  I am fortunate to have a kid that loves veggies so I thought I’d bring Gabby in on this one to help me out. I was very intrigued to find out what kinds of ingredients that she would put in her ideal veggie and protein bowl. Her first step in the planning was to ask me what veggies and fruits were in season.  We took to the internet to research Fall produce and she decided she wanted to do a Fall themed bowl featuring some of the best produce of the season.  

She then literally “mapped” out her bowl recipe on a paper- including kale, sweet potatoes, turnips, Brussels sprouts, as the veggies.   

We thought it would be a fun idea to take a variety of our favorite recipes I have previously created using these veggies in the past, to fill the bowl with all kinds of flavor.  Once our ingredient shopping was done,  we had a busy afternoon of cooking the veggie recipes to put in her bowl. To make it complete, she chose steamed edamame as her plant protein source and then topped her bowl off with a sprinkle of dried cranberries for the finishing touch.  The result was rainbow of color, taste and nutrition and I was very proud of her creation.  We hope you will give it a try and also check out some of the other powerful plant based bowls developed by the awesome group of Recipe ReDux bloggers.

Ingredients:

½ cup Super Smoky Sweet Potato Chips:  Recipe HERE

½ cup Simply Sauteed Kale:  Recipe HERE

½ cup Honey Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts:  Recipe HERE

½ cup Sea Salt Roasted Turnips:  Recipe HERE

¼ cup cooked edamame

1 tablespoon dried cranberries

Directions:

Prepare all the veggie recipes as listed per links above and arrange a ½ cup of each into a medium sized bowl.  Add the edamame and cranberries and serve!

Serving size: 1 bowl Calories 415  Protein 14 g Carb 54 g  Fiber 13 g Sugars 18 g Fat 15 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium  600 mg

An InLinkz Link-up

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Gabby's Eats: Sea Salt Roasted Turnips

Gabby and I were overdue for time in the kitchen together so this past weekend we got cooking!  She wanted to make something seasonal and after doing a little research online about Fall fruits and vegetables, she chose turnips. Gabby was intrigued because they are one of the only vegetables she has not tried and I was all about her choice since I have never cooked turnips at home and have only enjoyed them at restaurants. I asked her how she wanted to prepare them and she came up with something simple- olive oil and sea salt. I suggested the best way to cook them was to roast them with her two chosen ingredients.

I peeled and chopped up the turnips (since this was a bit of a challenging task requiring a sharp knife) and then Gabby added the olive oil and the salt and mixed them up. We spread cubed turnips on a greased pan and in just 15 minutes we had crispy delicious turnips fresh out of the oven. They were so delicious and the olive oil and salt were just the perfect way to season them.  Gabby ate them all up and was happy to have a new veggie choice in the rotation.  We hope you will give them a try too!

Ingredients:

2 average sized turnips, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes (about 4 cups raw cubes)

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼- ½ teaspoon sea salt

cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add the cubed turnips into a medium bowl, put in the olive oil and salt and toss to coat.  Spread the turnips out on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray and roast for 10 minutes. Flip them over and cook another 5-10 minutes until tender with a fork and browned.

Makes 2 Cups, 4 servings

Serving Size: ½ cup Calories 95 Protein 1 g Carb 8 g Fiber 2.5 g Sugars 5 g Fat 7 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium 400 mg

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Recipe ReDux Post # 48: Cajun Cauliflower "Rice" and Beans

July's Recipe ReDux theme is "Get Your Fruits and Veggies in Shape" and we were encouraged to develop a recipe using fruits or veggies in unusual shapes/creative cuts.  Cauliflower had been on sale at my local Sprouts Market last week so I eagerly bought 2 large heads. As the week wore on I started to realize the cauliflower had been just sitting in my fridge and it needed to be eaten!! I decided it would be the perfect veggie to work with for this challenge and I thought it would be a good idea to try my luck at another cauliflower rice recipe.  As you may recall, I have made a faux risotto with cauliflower rice with turned out great.  This time I went for simple pairing of cauliflower rice with black beans and spiced it up with some Cajun flair.  Just four ingredients combine to make a super yummy dish that can be served as a side with your favorite protein, or even be a meal itself served over salad or topped with avocado, cheese and salsa! It is high in fiber and protein and low in fat too, which is a bonus!! I hope you will give it a try and take a look at all the other creative veggie/fruit recipes developed by the talented Recipe ReDux group!

Ingredients:

1 large head of cauliflower
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 to 1 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning
Two 15 ounce cans of black beans, drained and rinsed well

Directions:

Make the cauliflower into raw "rice " by using THIS recipe.  Add the tablespoon olive oil to a large skillet and put in the cauliflower rice and sprinkle the seasoning over it .  Saute on medium-high heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently.  Add the black beans and heat for another 3-5 minutes until warmed through.

Makes 5 heaping cups, five servings

Serving size: 1 heaping cup Calories 189 Protein 12 g Carb 31 g Fiber 8 g Sugars 2 g Fat 3 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium  136 mg

An InLinkz Link-up

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Recipe ReDux Post # 47 Avocado Peach Salsa with Some Help From Gabby!

The Recipe ReDux Challenge for June is "Celebrate a ReDuxer"! Being that June happens to be the birthday month of Recipe ReDux (it started back in June 2011!)  we were asked to pick a recipe from one of the bloggers in the group to share or create our own dish from, using it as an inspiration.

Let me start off by saying, I love the blog Teaspoon of Spice , developed by two very talented dietitians, Serena  Ball MS, RD and Deanna Segrave-Daly RD.  They not only happen to be fellow moms/dietitians/bloggers and successful business owners, but in addition to that, they are the very group of dietitians who developed the Recipe ReDux in the first place, along with Regan Jones RD!! So not only do I have to thank them for this particular recipe, but I am very grateful that they bought to fruition Recipe ReDux: "the first and only recipe challenge founded by registered dietitians"!  Over the years I have enjoyed the challenges and they really inspire me, not to mention keep me on my toes and creative in the kitchen. I enjoy following the Teaspoon of Spice Blog because it has a bunch of healthy and delicious recipes (with gorgeous photos!) and some really fun and informative posts on "Healthy Kitchen Hacks" and practical "How To's".  Now on to the recipe.......

I happened to have a bunch of peaches in the house that were getting quite ripe and so I went straight to their blog and typed in the word peach in the search box.  A LOT of tempting recipes came up, including this peach pie but what really caught my eye was a peach salsa they had previously posted. We had BBQ chicken on the menu that night and this salsa seemed like the perfect accompaniment to the liven up the meal, PLUS it was a great recipe that Gabby and I could kick off her Summer vacay by making together in the kitchen.  So I pulled up the recipe, called Gabby in the kitchen and we got to work.

She helped chop the cucumbers

and the peaches,

squeeeeeeeze some fresh lime

I did the avocados and she helped pick, chop and throw in some fresh basil (the original recipe calls for mint, which we did not have.)

Then it was all mixed together and voila...we had amazing peach salsa.

You must, I repeat must... go and check out/make this recipe by clicking HERE to get to their blog!!  In addition to the salsa there is another part of the recipe that actually involves grilling chicken atop limes which I intend to try next, if only we had not run out of limes making the salsa.!! Again, hope you will check it out, along with call the celebratory June creations from the fantastic Recipe ReDux Group!!

Gabby's Shot:

An InLinkz Link-up

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Recipe ReDux Post # 42 Power Salad!

January’s  Recipe Redux is appropriately titled “A New Ingredient for the New Year," and it was all about choosing a novel ingredient and creating a recipe with it.  I didn’t have anything particular in mind so I decided to just take a trip to the store and see what jumped out at me.  I put three new ingredients in my basket- dried mulberries, avocado oil and celery salt, thinking I could probably figure out a recipe using at least one of them.  I started with a salad, throwing the mulberries atop a bed of spinach, walnuts and white beans.  Then I decided to take things a step further and actually use the celery salt and avocado oil in the dressing...which really worked!  All three ingredients really made the recipe stand out- the mulberries add a sweet and chewy texture which combos nicely with the fresh spinach, hearty beans and the crunchy walnuts.  The avocado oil has flavor set apart from olive oil and adding the celery salt, along with honey mustard gave it some zip.  This salad is a powerhouse of nutrition too- containing lean protein, healthy fat, antioxidants and fiber….plus it is very filling and delicious! I hope you will give it a try along with all these other new ingredient inspired recipes from the talented Recipe ReDux group.

Ingredients:

2-3 packed cups of spinach leaves (washed and dried well)

¼ cup dried mulberries

¼ cup canned white beans (rinsed well)

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

1 tablespoon avocado oil

1 tablespoon honey mustard

¼ teaspoon celery salt

Directions:

Add the first 4 ingredients to a medium bowl.  In a small bowl whisk together the avocado oil, mustard and celery salt.  Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Refrigerate if not serving immediately.

Makes 2 servings

Serving size: ½ salad Calories 220 Protein 5 g  Carb 22 g  Fiber 6 g Sugars 8 g Fat 12 g Saturated fat 1.5 g Sodium 280 mg

An InLinkz Link-up

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Recipe Round Up- Delicious Holiday Sides

We are deep in the heart of the holiday season now and while sweet treats and desserts are often a focus (along with main courses like turkey, ham and brisket) side dishes deserve some attention too, especially vegetables!  Indulgence is no stranger to most of us this time of year so a great way to add some balance is by making sure to eat plenty of non-starchy veggies!  They are powerhouses of vitamins, minerals and fiber, plus the non-starchy veggies are low in calories and can help fill you up to prevent over eating other high calorie foods. Below are some of the favorite veggie side dishes that I created over the years that should definitely win a place at your table!

Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts

Kale and Clementine Salad

Roasted Eggplant Salad

Balsamic Roasted Cauliflower With Dates and Pistachios

Honey Mustard Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Carrots

Roasted Parmesan Cauliflower Salad

Roasted Brussels Sprouts Salad With Cranberries and Almonds

Maple Glazed Carrots

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