Super Quick Warm Salad with Popped Snap Peas

This salad is super yummy and super quick. I'm working on the house today and don't have a ton of time to cook, but I wanted something warm and super healthy. That's where this salad comes in. And I love the way sugar snap peas sound when they're snapped, more of a round "pop" than a snap, so that's what I'm calling them -- popped snap peas! Using pre-washed greens and washing your tomatoes when you bring them home from the store makes this a super quick meal. Also, these pics are bit bit blurry because of the whole, not a lot of time today thing. But, you get the idea, and I'll retake them eventually!

Warm Salad with Popped Snap Peas

3 cups greens -- I used baby spinach and mixed spring greens
handful of canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
drizzle of olive oil
several turns of fresh pepper
handful of grape tomatoes
juice and zest of one lemon
handful of sugar snap peas, "popped" in the middle

Tear your greens into a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients except the lemon juice to a warm skillet, cover and cook on high just for a couple of minutes until your chickpeas are a bit browned. Add the lemon juice and let cook for a minute to reduce the acidity and increase sweetness. Pour contents of skillet over your greens and top with more olive oil and pepper, if you want. Enjoy!

Southwest Eggrolls

You guys, I don't even know what's been up with me. I've wanted to write a new post for so long and it just hasn't happened! I've gotten out of the habit of taking pictures and of writing up posts, but at least there's one for you today. And it's awesome.

These bad boys are inspired by Chili's southwest eggrolls.  They are so tasty since they're baked, they're pretty darn good for you, too!

 

Southwest Eggroll Ingredients: 

• 1 tube vegan chorizo - I used Cacique
• 3 cups frozen spinach
• 1.25 cups frozen corn
• 3/4 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 11 vegan eggroll wrappers (or however many it ends up taking to roll up your ingredients!)

Directions:

• Ok, so here we go: brown the chorizo, thaw the spinach and drain it in a colander to remove excess moisture. Thaw the corn and drain and rinse your beans.
• Mix all of that together and set it at your work station. Also prep 2 baking pans (I think, maybe just 1) with cooking spray.
• Set out your wrappers and a small glass of water and make a little space on a plate or cutting board to role up your eggrolls.
• I know all of that sounds ridiculous but it's really ok! It's not too bad once you get used to the rolling process!
• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Here's a diagram: Take your wrapper and lay it out in front of you. Add about 3 tablespoons (one big scoop with a spoon), and wrap according to the diagram. Wet your fingers in the cup of water, use them to wet the corner (the top corner in the last drawing) and finish rolling-- this will seal the edge.

  

  http://dunkincookingthesemi-homemadeway.blogspot.com/2009/12/turkey-stuffing-egg-rolls.html

• Continuing.... Line all of your little rolls up on the pans, spray the tops of them with a little more spray, and sprinkle with salt if you wish.
• Bake for.... I think about 18 minutes, until golden on top, then flip and bake until golden again.
• Make the ranch while its baking!
• Make sure to reheat these in the oven, so they aren't too soggy -- unless you happen to like them cold, which I do.

Nutrition info for the eggrolls -- per eggroll (1/11th of recipe):
cals: 135kcal | fat: 2.30g | carbs: 21.13g | prot: 7.20g

Avocado Ranch Ingredients:

• 1 avocado 
• 1 cup almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 dash cayenne
• 1/2 tsp dried dill

 Directions:

•  Blend everything but the dill in a blender, add the dill and pulse to mix slightly. That's it! Not too bad, right?

Nutrition info for 1/4 cup dressing: cals: 44kcal | fat: 3.79g | carbs: 2.74g | prot: 0.66g

Check out that nutrition info! 44 calories for a whole 1/4 cup -- that's craziness!

Check out this yumminess! Hope you guys enjoy!

Buffalo- Style Cauliflower and Ranch!

This is one of those recipes that take a little longer than a normal  dinner (a normal dinner for me is reheat some potatoes and add some broccoli and sauce!) but is soooo worth it! I've seen this whole cauliflower "chicken" thing around for a while, starting at one of my favorite blogs, Chocolate Covered Katie. For this buffalo-style cauliflower, I used this recipe and I used the ranch (or Sanctuary Dressing) from Appetite for Reduction-- a modified version can be found here. This ranch is super good (and this from a former ranch addict), and is just the perfect hing to cool down the spicyness of the "wings". You can also use gluten free flours for the cauliflower! As always, I've modified both recipes a bit for my tastes and what I have on hand. I'm really excited to make it again when my MIL is here next week, this time with rice flour! And now for the recpies!

 

 Check out the awesome texture on these!

 Buffalo-Style Cauliflower

• 1 head of cauliflower, cut into chunks
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• pinch of black pepper
• 1 tablespoon agave

 Sauce

• 3 tablespoons margarine
• 1 cup hot wing sauce

Directions

• preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit
• mix the flour, milk, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper in a bowl (preferrably with a lid)
• add about 1/2 of the cauliflower to the bowl, put the lid on and shake shake shake until all of the pieces are covered
• take the pieces out with a fork and place on a greased baking sheet, trying not to let the pieces touch
• repeat with the remaining pieces (I used 2 baking sheets)
• if you don't have a bowl with a lid, just use a fork and your fingers to cover each piece, let the excess drip off, and place on the baking sheet-- this just takes a little more time
• drizzle with the agave (this is my addiction and gives it a yummy caramelized flavor!)
• bake for about 15-20 minutes, flipping once
• while that's baking, melt the margarine and mix it with the wing sauce
• when the cauliflower is done and crispy, brush on the sauce and bake for another 5-10 minutes

 

Tofu Ranch (Appetite for Reduction Sanctuary Dressing)

Ingredients

• 15 oz. firm tofu (she uses silken, but my store doesn't carry it and this works!)
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 cubes vegan bouillon
• 3 tablespoons vegan mayo (I'm in love with Mindful Mayo!)
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1.5 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp sugar (or agave, I was out of that)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground back pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried dill

Directions

• put everything but the pepper and the dill into a blender and blend away, scraping the sides and pushing it around as needed until creamy
• add the dill and pepper and pulse until mixed through (this leaves you with bits and pieces instead of a murky-colored dressing!)

Eat the cauliflower with the dressing and enjoy! SO yum!

Mmm, spicy "wings" and creamy dressing

Spicy Lemon Dressing

I haven’t posted many savory recipes yet because I’ve been mostly living off of cupcakes and ramen noodles lately. I just haven’t been feeling the cooking vibe—this may have something to do with the fact that my kitchen needs serious cleaning. But I did make a dressing today that is really delicious on noodles, barley, or whatever other grain. I like to add veggies and beans and call it a meal, and if the grains and beans are already cooked its very quick. This dressing is inspired by OhSheGlows though I can't find the recipe I originally adapted it from.

Recipe:

Spicy Lemon Dressing

Ingredients:

6T olive oil

6T lemon juice

2T water

2 t apple cider vinegar

1/2 T fresh ground black pepper

1/2 T salt

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:

Combine everything in a jar or salad dressing container, secure the lid, and shake. Eat on everything. Enjoy!

Per 2 T: cals: 110kcal | fat: 11.86g | carbs: 1.49g | prot: 0.20g

Today I had this with some whole wheat rotini, frozen defrosted peas, and parsley for lunch. It was super yummy and refreshing!