Chia Pudding

Finally a breakfast entry!! My family and I love this very easy, make ahead breakfast.  On busy weekday mornings it is so nice to roll downstairs, open the refrigerator and have a healthy, clean and nutrient packed meal ready and waiting.  Make it to suit your personal taste with fresh fruit, berries and nuts on top.

1/4 c Chia Seeds
1 c nonfat milk (I use dairy, you can substitute your choice)
1 c nonfat greek yogurt
1 Tbs maple syrup

Whisk together the milk, yogurt and maple syrup.  Whisk in the chia seeds. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
In the morning, stir the pudding and place into individual serving bowls.  Top with your choice of fresh or thawed frozen fruit, nuts, seeds etc.  I like to add just a touch of honey or maple syrup drizzled over the top.

This recipe makes 3-4 servings.

Oatmeal Cookie

Sometimes you just need a cookie...  These cookies are a TREAT! However refined sugar and butter do not need to be a part of satisfying your sweet tooth.  Indulge! (but only a little :) )

1 c Old Fashioned Oats
3/4 c whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs coconut oil, in liquid form
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c honey
2 Tbs chia seeds
2 Tbs flax seeds
Dried Fruit, Nuts, chocolate chips, shaved coconut, etc.

Combine oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in medium sized bowl and mix well.  In another bowl combine coconut oil, egg, vanilla extract and honey, stir.  Pour wet ingredients into dry and stir just until combined.  Fold in chia seeds, flax seeds and your choice of fruit, nuts or chips.
Place mixture in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.  Don't skip this step.  Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and back at 325 for about 14 minutes.

Pesto Ono

Ono in Hawaii, Wahoo in other parts of the world.  This dinner is incredibly easy and always a huge hit with my family.  Almost any fish would work.  Salt and pepper the fish and pop it on the grill.  Top with homemade pesto, and sliced fresh tomatoes.  Yum!

Greek Tapas; Gigante Beans

These babies are BIG BEANS! I have trouble finding them regularly so I often substitute large lima beans or even butter beans.  No matter the bean, the end result is a super yummy addition to our Greek Tapas menu. We ate the leftovers at a fun picnic we attended the next day!!
This meal also included cilantro, lime cucumbers fresh from the garden and a baked eggplant, caprese salad.  I substituted avocado for mozzarella and all were very happy with the result!

1 Tbs olive oil
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 1/2c stock, chicken or veg
1/4 c red wine vinegar
1/4 c Ouzo, plus a little in a glass with equal parts water and an ice cube to sip ;)
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 tsp fresh oregano
2 tsp fresh flat leaf parsley
2 cans or 3-4 cups of cooked Gigante, or large white bean

Saute onion in olive oil until softened, add garlic and stir until fragrant.  Add remaining ingredients, all but the beans and simmer until reduced by about 1/3.   Add the beans and gently simmer until heated through, about 7 minutes.

Seafood Risotto

Sunday dinner time!  Do not fear risotto!  The majority of recipes for risotto call for slowly adding the liquid and stirring for way more minutes that I care to give.  We have found that adding all of the liquid at the beginning and stirring throughout, yields just as good an outcome.  You can vary the seafood to your taste, scallops, crab, mussels would also be good choices.

4 c Arborio Rice
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
1 c shiitake mushrooms, chopped
6 c stock, chicken or vegetable
jar clam juice
1 can chopped clams

1 large lobster tail, grilled with shell on, meat chopped
1/4-1/2 lb shrimp, pealed
1/4-1/2 lb calamari

Saute onion in olive oil until softened, about 5 minutes, add carrots and mushrooms and saute for another 5 minutes.  Add rice and stir just to coat.  Add stock, jar of clam juice and juice from can of clams, reserve the clams until the end.  Cook rice at a vigorous simmer, stirring often, until rice is just al dente (almost completely cooked, still a bit firm), add shrimp and calamari and simmer until cooked through.  Add lobster at the end and stir to combine.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Plate with red pepper flakes and shaved parmesan on top.  A drizzle of white truffle oil also puts this dish over the edge!

Quinoa and Lentils with Roasted Cauliflower

Quinoa (keen-wah) gets a lot of attention these days.  Why??  It is a complete protein! Meaning, it contains all 9 essential amino acids that our bodies cannot make.  It is another low-energy-density food, meaning fewer calories given the volume of food. It has iron and is rich in antioxidants.  You may have heard your doctor or friends suggest an anti-inflammatory diet. Quinoa is a great addition to these diets that help to decrease pain throughout the body.  It is also very easy to make.
We have added red lentils to this dish to give it an extra protein boost and topped with roasted cauliflower and our tahini dressing.  We all licked our plates clean tonight :)  I served it with a fresh from our garden, cucumber and tomato salad.

1 head of cauliflower, sliced in florets
2 Tbs olive oil
Salt and Pepper

1 c red quinoa
1 c red lentils
1 medium leek, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
1 Tbs olive oil
1 c sherry cooking wine, can also use white wine
1 c water

1/3 c tahini
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbs honey
1 tsp salt

toasted pumpkin seeds

Place cauliflower in an oven safe dish and bake at 400 for about 30 minutes, covered only for the first half, until softened and slightly browned.

While cauliflower is baking, saute leek and red onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft and translucent.  Add quinoa, water and sherry, bring to a boil then cover and gently simmer for about 8 minutes.  Add lentils and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add more water if necessary to ensure mixture doesn't burn down. All water should be absorbed at the end of the 10 minutes.  If it isn't, drain it off.

Mix together the tahini dressing while that is cooking and toast the pumpkins seeds as well.

Place quinoa mixture on a plate, top with cauliflower then pour the tahini dressing over the top and sprinkle toasted pumpkin seeds.

Pesto Farro Salad

The temperature is increasing and light, refreshing salads are what I crave on these beautiful summer days.  Never forget the protein and always look for a fresh component; however, you can make many substitutes in this salad depending on your taste and the availability of ingredients.  This is fast, easy, nutritious and delicious! Enjoy!

2 c Pearled Farro
2 c Navy beans (or other white bean), if using canned just use one can, always drain and rinse
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jar or can of artichoke hearts, quartered
11/2 c fresh cherry or grape tomatoes
1/3 c red onion, diced
1/2 c kalamata olives
1/2 c toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
3/4-1 c homemade pesto (find recipe here: Pesto )
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 c feta, crumbled

Cook farro in full pot of water at a vigorous simmer for about 20 minutes, drain. Mix all other ingredients and top with lemon juice and feta.