Superbowl XLIX Recipe Roundup

Is everyone ready for the Superbowl this Sunday?  Obviously, being from Washington I am a Seahawks fan!  We are having some friends from Spokane visit us this weekend so they can come to Seattle to watch the game in a big bar with us.  Should be loud, fun, and exciting!

They arent getting here until late late Saturday night, so earlier in the evening, Im going to a local natural food market called Marlenes for a WFPB class hosted by Nina from Urban Vegan Chic.  Although, after 4 years of practicing a Nutritarian lifestyle, I know my way around the WFPB-block, you never know what new things you will learn.  Im excited to have this opportunity to meet others in my community with similar interests.

Since moving to Puyallup in July, I have felt a little disconnected from not having any face-to-face plant-based support in my life.  (Im a part of several facebook group centered around ETL, which are wonderful.)  My parents, when I lived in Spokane, were my nearby support where I could go for a meal and never have to worry about being served SAD foods or being challenge for my ideals.  Hopefully I can find some of that support through classes like these.  Im optimistic. :)

Now on to the Superbowl... what are you going to make!?  Although we are going to be spending the day in Seattle for Superbowl, I ended up making some snackies for a work party and for Saturday snacking.  Here are a few of my favorite game-day dishes: (links to each recipe are included in the titles)

APPETIZERS

We ALL know that the best part of Superbowl is grazing on appetizers for a good portion of the day.  Keep yourself and your guests satisfied with these healthy appetizers alongside whole-grain chips/crackers and veggies.

Spicy Cajun Cauliflower Bites


Guacamole and Mexi-Salad


Pico De Gallo


Vegan Ranch Dip


Roasted Pine Nut Hummus (Mock Sabre Hummus)


Spicy Buffalo Hummus (This one is my favorite for game day with celery sticks!)


Whole Wheat Vegan Naan to go with hummus (Step-by-step instructions with pictures!)



Oil-Free Baked Falafels with this Tzatziki-like Dip



Baked Vegetable "Fries"


SIDES

Here are two of my favorite "side dishes" that would go well with Superbowl fare:

Spicy Macaroni Salad


Quick Collard Wraps


MAIN DISH

This is my absolute FAVORITE chili!  It cooks up quick and easy in a pressure cooker from dried beans, or can be done fairly quickly on the stovetop with canned beans.  This recipe will feed a small crowd, but it never lasts too long when we have friends over.

Three Bean Chili (Pressure Cooker Friendly)


DESSERT

Every Superbowl party has to have something sweet to go with all of the savory appetizers.  Try this dessert dip with apple slices or some whole wheat gram crackers.  It is sure to hit the sweet-spot!

Brownie Batter Dip



Health and Happiness,

Amy

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Summer Salad Recipe Roundup

What are you doing for the 4th of July this year?  I am staying in town and working extra hours and cover for a co-worker who is taking a few days off.  Then on the 4th Im planning on hanging out at my parents house with my dog while they are out of town.  They have a nice deck looking over their beautiful yard, so I think I will get some much needed Vitamin D while I read and relax.

Then in the evening on the 4th, a few good friends and I will be going to my office in downtown Spokane to watch the Riverfront Park fireworks go off at dusk from our private balcony.  It should be lots of fun, although I will miss Kevin.  My husband is heading out to Sequim, WA today to go with his family on their annual trip to Ocean Shores for the 4th.  I went last year and had a hoot, but I have to stay behind this year for my girlfriends Bachelorette Party on the 5th.

Now on to the recipes!  Summer BBQs, picnics, and pot-lucks can often be hard times for those following a Nutritarian lifestyle.  I cant tell you how many times Ive had to bring my own bean burgers to a party!  Another go-to is to bring a colorful salad for everyone to have.  You may be surprised to see those die-hard meat-eaters going back for seconds on some of these!

Patriotic Grain Salad

(Patriotic Grain Salad)
Celebrate the red, white, and blue this summer with
this (somewhat) color-coordinated salad.
With a tzatziki-like dressing, this one is sure to be a hit!

Crisp Cucumber Celery Salad

(Crisp Cucumber Celery Salad)
This salad is super crisp and perfect for summer parties.
Feel free to chop the celery and cucumber as small
as you like for easier serving as well.

(Ginger Kale Slaw)
This is one of my all-time favorite salads!
I made it a few summers ago trying to copy-cat a healthy
version of a ginger dressing from a local teriaki place.
In the end, I love this more than I ever did the SAD salad! 

(Lemony Israeli Cous Cous)
This unique take on cous cous is not only
delicious and satisfying, but will leave party-goers
asking you for the recipe. :)

Kittys Asian Slaw

(Kittys Asian Slaw)
This is one of my moms go to salads that she makes for pot-lucks.
It is quick to throw together and has a sweet
 sesame flavor that everyone will enjoy.

(Pomegranate, Lentil, and Wheat Berry Salad)
This salad really packs a pop of flavor and the contrast
of the green kale and red pomegranate make it visually
appealing to those passing down the buffet line.

Flavorful Tahini and Grain Salad

(Flavorful Tahini and Grain Salad)
Serve this grain-based salad on its own or
with some chopped spinach or kale mixed it.

Amys Notes:


Final Recipe Picture

Pinterest Reference:

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Cinco de Mayo Recipe Ideas

Happy Cinco de Mayo to all!  I love a reason to celebrate any day, and even more so if it involves Mexican food!  Unfortunately, I dont have a new recipe to share with you today, as Kevin and I have been busy with finishing up prepping for our Honeymoon Cruise to the Caribbean, leaving May 18th (translation: Ive been shopping for cute cruise clothes).  Since getting married in September 2012, we have promised ourselves we wont fall into the trap of "well take a Honeymoon someday", and never actually go.  Thankfully we have kept that promise to each other and are looking forward to a fun-filled week and a half in the sun!

Im not sure if there will be any more recipe posts until we get back from our cruise, as grocery shopping and cooking will be coming to a minimum in the next few weeks as we clean out our fridge and eat meals Ive been freezing.  Perhaps I will post an informational post about how to Cruise/Vacation as a Nutritarian.  Stay tuned for that!

In the meantime, celebrate this Mexican holiday with some delicious and nutritious Nutritarian recipes...

Start off with some appetizers:

Amys Pico de Gallo

Basic Guacamole

Carrot Top Cilantro Chimichurri for topping off Tacos, Enchiladas, or Nachos

Get your nutrients with a Mexican Salad:

Recipe here

Mexi-Salad (top right)

Tex-Mex Slaw

Cilantro Lime Rice

Enjoy a Hot Entree:

Mexican Pinto Bean Soup

Aztec Corn Soup

Sweet Potato and Bean Tacos

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Rant Recipe Pictures

Ah!  I cant believe it has already been over a week since Ive last blogged.  I seem to always get on a blogging roll, and then life happens.  Any-who... last week I came down with some very unpleasant stomach bug that caused me to be home stick from work for a day and a half.  I just felt super nauseous for a few days (ginger in club soda helped that a bit), then the second day I had horrible body aches and a mild migraine.  Not fun at all, BUT, compared to the flu that everyone else has been getting that has major symptoms coming out of both ends along with a fever and chills, I consider myself lucky.

To top off the end of being sick, my "lovely" lady time of the month came.  Perfect...  (***Girl rant coming, boys skip to the "Safe Zone" below.  You have been warned!***)  For those of you who have followed my blog for some time, you may remember almost a year ago when I was having major issues with my birth control pills.  I started getting TMJ migraines, I felt constantly tired, and I felt the need to panic about everything, even to the point of causing a panic attack or two.  For anyone who has never had a panic attack before, it feels like you have tunnel vision, you cant breathe but oddly breathe too much, and you sometimes lose feeling to your extremities, including your face.  Its terrifying!  I finally figured out that the hormones in my birth control pill were causing all of these weird symptoms, along with a mild case of anemia.

In the end, I completely went off of the birth control pill to try to get my hormones back to normal and I started taking some iron supplements.  I felt like I was slowly getting better over the summer, and then fall hit.  All of a sudden, my once very regular like-clockwork period was late... or rather, skipped an entire month.  What the french toast!?  After some mild panic crying and several pregnancy tests later, I knew for certain that I wasnt pregnant, but I had to wait an entire month for it to finally come.  Since then my periods have been getting slowly closer together (1 month and 3 weeks, 1 month and 2 week, then this time was 1 month and 1 week).  At this point, I am hoping I will be fully back to normal within a cycle or two.

Why am I telling you this?  Because I think it is important to remember where we have come from and where we are going.  Looking back nearly a year ago, I felt like my health wasnt in my control and that everything that was happening to my body could not be helped.  Now, I feel calm and energized and in control, compared to the sense of panic, perpetual tiredness, and helplessness I felt through much of last year.   Last year made me realize that health is not just a number on a scale, but how you feel during all 24 hours of the day.  I can say that I live my 24 hours a day in 2014 much more fully than I did during most of 2013, and Im truly excited for what this year will bring.

(***Safe Zone, Rant Over***) 

Anyways, I havent had too much time to cook over the last week or two, so no new recipes to report.  Tonight I will be trying a new recipe that I discovered on Whole Foods Markets website.  My husband, Kevin, often likes spicy sausages with hotdog buns for dinner because they are easy enough for him to make and very filling.  Obviously, NOT healthful food, but this last time he ate them, he told me that they gave him an awful gut ache and bathroom consequences later (hmm, wonder why? ;)).  Lately he has been enjoying more meals with beans that I have been making, like teriaki chickpeas and lentil soup, so I thought I might give this recipe a try to replace the spicy sausage in his hotdog buns: Lentil Sloppy Joes.

What has everyone else been making lately?

And here are some fun random pictures:

I feel like all Nutritarians or those who eat a
Plant-Based diet could qualify to wear one of these ;)

My first knitted item for myself in over 6 months!  I got the yarn
 from my mom for Christmas and a pair of beautiful custom made
bamboo knitting needles from my brother and sister-in-law.

I found this at a fancy kitchen gadget store downtown about
a month ago.  It instantly went on my wish list!

Kevin and I got around to hanging up some pictures from our wedding
now that we have some wall space to do it.  This is one of both of our
 favorites when we surprised everyone on our first dance by doing a dance
compilation of Thriller, the Charleston swing, the dance song from
Napolean Dynomite, and Summer Lovin from Grease.

One of my best girlfriends and I sharing a moment while we were out
for our annual Ladys Holiday Evening Out.  This year we called it
"The Night of Sparkles" and dressed up in shimmery cocktail dresses.

I found this killer ab workout that Kevin and I are going to do
tonight at the gym we just joined.  Wish us and our poor abs luck!

Check out this hilarious dinosaur tray.  Love it!

Here is an interesting convo I had with Siri the other day.

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Savory Smokey Oats Recipe from The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook

Generally, our Sundays during football season are always spent in sweatpants, watching football and our Fantasy Football scores, while Kevin anxiously waits for his homemade pizza, and I spend time prepping meals for myself for the week.  This generally consists of cooking a large pot of grains like brown rice, wheat berries, barley, millet, quinoa, etc.  I also make sure I have enough beans to eat throughout the week, whether this be planning to eat quick-cooking legumes like lentils or black eyed peas, having stocks of canned beans, or cooking a crockpot full of a certain bean.

This Sunday, I made quinoa and cooked a crockpot of garbanzo beans for the week.  The nice thing about these two staples is that I know Kevin will happily eat both of them, with different add-ins than me of course!

I also decided to pre-make a breakfast/any-meal-of-the-day dish from Ann and Jane Esselstyns new cookbook The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook called Savory Smokey Oats.  I recently got this book on my Kindle after listening to Chef AJs telecast with the two Esselstyn ladies discussing the recipes featured in the cookbook.

Now, I dont have heart disease, nor do I plan on getting heart disease in the future, but after hearing them discuss some of the delicious recipes, I just couldnt resist!  Plus, my work graciously just sent me a $25 gift card to thank me for my efforts in organizing our office Health Fair last month, so in a way I was able to get the cookbook for free!

So far, I have made it through reading the introduction, breakfasts, lunches, soups, and spreads/toppings.  I still need to make my way through the appetizers/sides, salads, salad dressings, dinners and desserts (I cant wait!).

I have really enjoyed all of the personality and family-feel they have put into the cookbook.  You can really tell that these are the recipes these ladies have in their arsenal of regular meals for their families.  I just hate cookbooks that dont have that practicality and familiarity in them.

I also really like the versatility of all of their recipes, especially the hummus.  They encourage you to use their no-oil, no-tahini hummus in and on anything and everything.  I plan on making some of this hummus this week with my cooked garbanzo beans for the week.

Now on to the Savory Smokey Oats!  This recipe caught my eye because I LOVE oats, but have always associated them with sweeter tastes and breakfast time.  This recipe breaks the oat mold for sure!  This Sunday, I was in the mood for a savory breakfast, but didnt want to spend the time chopping and cooking potatoes and veggies, so I went with the savory oats.

Due to copyright issues, I obviously wont be posting the recipe, but I will provide a link to the recipe and let you know how I tweaked it a bit.

Savory Smokey Oats
Time: 5 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking
Servings: 4 servings (double recipe)
Authors: Ann Crile Esselstyn and Jane Esselstyn
Recipe Link: Google Books

Amys Notes:
I followed the recipe exactly as directed, but doubled the recipe.  I steamed chopped kale on the side to add at the end of the recipe.  Near the end of cooking, I thought the steel-cut oats seamed a bit soupy, so I added 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats (1/4 cup for single batch), and cooked for an additional 5 minutes.  This allowed it to thicken up perfectly and come together like I imagined from the picture.

I served my oats with a bit of black pepper and my favorite Louisiana hot sauce.  With the hot sauce, it became the perfect savory breakfast dish.  The flavors blend together nicely, and I can just imagine that this is going to taste great reheated the next day!

So far, I would give this cookbook a thumbs up, especially when it comes to recipes with no-oil and VERY minimal to no added sodium and sweeteners.  All of the recipes are very approachable and seem to be adaptable to different family tastes.  Even if you dont have heart disease, this cookbook should be on your shelf to help you prevent heart disease in the most delicious way!

If you would like to purchase this cookbook AND support Amys Nutritarian Kitchen, by clicking this link you will be directed to Amazon and a little bit of the book sale will go to me for advertising.

Health and Happiness,

Amy

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