Berry Citrus Smoothie

I've been feeling pretty sluggish since the sugar and meat-a-palooza known as Christmas so I decided to start easing into my New Years juice cleanse a little early. This is today's breakfast. 

Berry Citrus Smoothie 

1 Red Grapefruit, peeled and sectioned

1 Orange, peeled and sectioned

1/2 C Frozen Mixed Berry Blend

1/2 Inch piece of Ginger, peeled

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Makes about 24 ounces. 

BBQ Meatless Loaf

I have experimented with many a meatless burger, loaf, meatball over the years and have not found many that stuck together well and had flavor. This recipe delivered on both counts. We used Trader Joe's Organic Sriracha and Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce on ours but you could use whatever Barbeque Sauce you like. We served it with a super simple side dish of roasted carrots that were topped with a bit of Parmesan cheese and fresh basil after they came out of the oven. This loaf was even good cold as a sandwich the next day!

BBQ Meatless Loaf
Serves 6

1 Tbs Oil

1 Onion, diced

2 Clove Garlic, finely chopped 

1 C Red Bell Pepper, diced

8 oz Crimini Mushrooms, diced

2 Cans Black Beans, drained

2 Tbs Chili Powder, salt free

2 tsp Smoked Paprika 

1 C Oatmeal

4 Tbs Trader Joes Sriracha and Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce or your favorite BBQ sauce

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large skillet over medium heat saute onion, garlic, red bell pepper and mushrooms in oil until soft. Stir in spices then mix in beans. Mix about half of the oatmeal and mash mixture with back of spoon or potato masher adding in oats until you get a doughy consistency that starts to stick together.

Line a loaf pan with parchment paper for easy removal of the loaf. Press bean mixture into pan and cover with BBQ Sauce.

Bake for about 30 minutes. Remove from pan, slice and enjoy!

Vegetable & Lentil Bolognese

There is an awesome recipe for lentil meatballs that we have been making for a while (and I linked it here) and I was actually planning on making tonight but things don't always work out as planned. The toddler has been in rare form today and there was no way I was pulling off the meatball recipe so I improvised. I can't give exact times for how long I sautéed everything because I was busy playing firefighter while making dinner. So embrace the craziness, crack open a bottle of red wine and make this recipe while saving the world. 

Vegetable and Lentil Bolognese

 Serves 8

1 C Lentils, Black or Green (red don't hold up well)

2 C Vegetable Broth 

1 Yellow Onion, finely diced

4 cloves Garlic, minced

8 oz Crimini Mushrooms, stems removed and diced

1 Zucchini, diced

1 C Red Wine, plus more for drinking!

1 Tbs Olive Oil 

2 tsp Oregano 

1 tsp Rosemary leaves 

1/5 tsp Thyme 

2 jars Pasta Sauce or 6 C homemade pasta sauce

Your preferred noodles for serving 

Cook lentils a few minutes less than package directions in vegetable broth to keep them firm. In a large skillet over medium low heat add olive oil and onion, cook until translucent. Add mushrooms and garlic continue cooking until onions begin to brown, then add zucchini. When zucchini is soft and onions are brown add spices, lentils and wine. Continue cooking until wine is absorbed. Add in jars of pasta sauce and serve over noodles. 
(This recipe freezes well so don't worry about making too much.)

Balancing Act

Living a healthy lifestyle is all about balance. We search for work/ life balance for healthy relationships with our family and friends. We try to find balance in our personal life and make time for ourselves but finding balance in our diet is often over looked.

I've often gone off on long winded tangents about keeping balance in your diet but like most advice I dish out, I often need to be reminded of it myself. I've always tried to feed the toddler as organically as possible and even managed to avoid giving him any refined sugar till nearly his second birthday. The holidays are the hardest time for me to keep our healthy lifestyle going as I tend to get caught up in the nostalgia of holiday meals past. Today was one such day.

Halloween is just a couple of days away and I kept seeing fun little posts on Pinterest about making little pumpkin shaped rice crispy treats and instead of making my Salted Maple Cashew Crispy Treats I decided to make the real deal. As the toddler and I were melting the corn syrup laden marshmallows with my organic butter I started to feel really guilty. I should have bought the organic rice cereal and why didn't I make the marshmallows from scratch with out the corn syrup. Ugh, I'm feeding my child garbage all for the sake of nostalgia! Then a little voice in my head told me to chill out.

Balance, we have always said we want the toddler to grow up with balance. We don't want these types of treats to be treated as taboo or else the second he is out of our sight he is going to feast on the forbidden foods. I don't want to tell him he can't have what the other kids are eating at the birthday parties. So I feel if he gets to eat them from time to time it won't be a big deal. As for today after I cut him a piece of rice crispy s treat (I didn't shape them into cute little pinterest worthy pumpkins after all) he ate a few bites and asked for some carrots, because at two he is already learning balance.

Peasants Pie

 I didn't want to call this Vegetarian Shepard's Pie, Shepard's Pie has meat and this dish isn't trying to pretend to be something its not. Peasants Pie stands on its own with a rich gravy filled with sweet carrots and turnips, earthy mushrooms and garlic, topped with a slightly cheesy mash of baked sweet potato. 

Peasants Pie is a great Meatless Monday recipe that can be easily made Vegan with a few changes. If you are a strict vegan or vegetarian most Natural Food Stores carry a vegan Worcestershire sauce and you could sub out the Parmesan cheese for nutritional yeast. If you are just going for an easy yet hardy Meatless Monday dish forgo the trip to the store and just use what you have on hand. Sometimes ingredients can be hard to track down, especially if you live in a town as small as mine!

Ingredients:
1 Yellow Onion, diced

4 Cloves Garlic, minced

3 stalks of Celery, chopped

8 oz Crimini Mushrooms, sliced

2 Turnips (about the size of your fist), peeled and cubed

3 Carrots, peeled and sliced

1 Tbs Oil

2 tsp dried Thyme

1/4 tsp Black Pepper

2 Tbs Flour

1 1/2 to 2 C Vegetable Broth

2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce 

1 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar 

For Topping:

2 medium Sweet Potatoes, baked

1/4 C freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

+2 Tbs freshly grated Parmesan Cheese for top

Preheat oven to 375. 

In a large skillet over medium heat oil, then add onions, garlic and celery. Cook for about 5 minutes then add in mushrooms cooking an additional 3 minutes before adding the carrots and turnips. Next add the thyme, pepper and flour stirring well and cooking until the flour starts to brown. Then slowly add in 1 1/2 C of the vegetable broth, scraping the pan to remove any browned bits from the bottom. Turn heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes adding remaining 1/2 C of broth if gravy gets too thick. 

Meanwhile mash the cooked sweet potatoes with 1/4 C Parmesan Cheese. 

Pour vegetables and gravy into a deep pie dish or 8x8 pan. Spread potatoes over top of vegetable mixture and top with remaining Parmesan cheese and bake for 20 minutes.  

Easy Everyday Pancake Mix

Who says pancakes have to be saved for special occasions like Saturday morning? My Easy Everyday Pancake Mix makes Monday morning pancakes possible!
I was tired of buying the over priced organic pancake mixes and making them from scratch every time was time consuming. Not to mention that I didn't want a huge batch of pancakes for just the toddler and I, so I came up with this mix based off our favorite pancake recipe. I just mix the dry ingredients together and store them in a quart jar. I have a piece of paper I keep under the ring on the lid with the ingredients for the mix on one side and the directions for making pancakes for two on the other so I am never searching for the recipes when I need them! You could make this with whatever flour you like, white, wheat or a mix (you could even make them with gluten free flour and add xanthin gum). I've even started making muffins with this mix, so look for those recipes in the future!




For Mix:
3 C. Organic Unbleached Flour
4 Tbs Evaporated Cane Sugar
4 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Sea Salt

Mix everything together and pour into a quart jar for storing.


For Pancakes...

If I want to just make enough for one or two people I add;

1/2 C Easy Pancake Mix
1 Egg
1/3 C Milk (cow, almond, cashew, whatever you desire)
2 tsp Oil or melted Butter
1/4 tsp Vanilla

For four People I double every thing but the egg:

1 C Easy Pancake Mix
1 Egg
2/3 C Milk
4 Tsp Oil or melted Butter
1/2 Tsp Vanilla

Stir together pancake mix and wet ingredients until lumps have disappeared.  In a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat drop desired amount of batter, I do tablespoons for silver dollar pancakes. When pancakes start to bubble, flip them.

(See how the left and right pancake have bubbles but the middle does not.) Another minute or so and they will be brown on the other side. Grab your syrup and dig in!

Mediterranean Turkey Meatballs

Today I needed some inspiration for the ground turkey I had in the fridge. I didn't want to just replace beef with turkey and make something boring like turkey tacos or chili, so when the hubby came home I asked him what sounding good tonight and he said Italian. I pulled all sorts of ingredients out of the fridge and decided a Mediterranean inspired meat ball was going to be on the menu tonight.

First of all do not use extra lean turkey unless you want a ball of sawdust in your mouth. Turkey is lean, some of the fat will cook off and in general we are always trying to add moisture to turkey meatballs, meat loaf and burgers. Speaking of extra moisture that's where the veggies come in. As the veggies cook they release moisture into the meat, that's a good thing. You know what's not good? Big chunks of raw veggies that make your meat ball, loaf, burger fall apart. That's why people think they need a binder ie; bread and eggs in meat balls.  PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! Do not add bread crumbs to these meatballs! They will be dry and taste like bread crumbs. Trust me, these babies hold together just fine as long as you chop everything VERY FINELY. That's why I repeat those instructions on every item. Follow these instructions and you will end up with moist, flavorful, not your everyday turkey meatballs.

Mediterranean Turkey Meatballs
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 Lb Ground Turkey (not extra lean)

1/2 small Yellow Onion, finely diced 

3 cloves Garlic, finely diced

2 Tbs Red Bell Pepper, finely diced

1 Tbs fresh Oregano, finely diced 

2 Tbs Feta Cheese, finely crumbled 

2 Tbs Kalamata Olives, finely diced

1/2 tsp Black Pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Roll meat mixture into balls. I made mine into 14 walnut sized balls. I grilled mine over medium heat on an oiled grill pan for about 12 minutes, flipping half way through. Yours may take more or less time depending on the size and cooking method. Keep a close eye to be sure they do not overcook and dry out.

We served our Mediterranean Turkey Meatballs on top of pasta with grilled zucchini, eggplant, mushrooms and kale with red sauce.

Spaghetti Squash with Caramelized Onions, Feta and Basil

Spaghetti Squash, my least favorite of the squash family. People are always trying to pass it off as spaghetti hidden under a store bought jar of marinara sauce, or worse a Bolognese both of which are too heavy for the delicate strands of spaghetti squash. This dish was created to celebrate the transition of Summer into Fall with tomatoes and basil from the Summer garden and onions and squash grown to be stored for the winter. Spaghetti squash certainly doesn't have much of a taste on its own so we have punched it up a bit with salty feta and kalamata olives as well as garlic roasted alongside the squash.

Spaghetti Squash with Caramelized Onions, Feta,
and Basil

Serves 4
1 Spaghetti Squash

2 cloves Garlic 

1 Yellow Onion, sliced

1 can Diced Tomatoes 

1 Tbs Olive Oil 

9 Kalamata Olives, chopped 

4 oz Feta Cheese, crumbled 

3 Tbs Basil, chiffonade

Preheat oven 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice spaghetti squash open lengthwise and scrape out seeds (I use an ice cream scoop). Place spaghetti squash cut side down on parchment lined baking sheet with cloves of garlic (unpeeled), bake 35-45 minutes. Squash is done when a sharp knife easily pierces the flesh. 

While squash and garlic cook, heat a saucepan over medium low, add in onion and oil stirring occasionally until onions start to caramelize.  When onions are caramelized add in tomatoes and simmer with lid on.

When squash and garlic are done, squeeze garlic out of peel, chop and scrape garlic into tomato sauce. Continue cooking the sauce while you prepare squash.

In a large bowl when squash is cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh with a fork to produce strands of squash noodles. Pour sauce over noodles and toss with fresh basil. Serve with a garnish of Feta and Kalamata Olives.

Approximately 225 Calories, 10 grams of Fat, 28 grams of Carbs, 6 grams of Fiber and 8 grams of Protein per serving. 

I'm Back, and how I got here.

 After an almost one year hiatus from Healthy Gourmet on the Go, I'm back. I quit writing a year ago  after we closed our store and there were two reasons why we did it, one reason that we shared with everyone was that we wanted more time with our little boy and we wanted to expand our family. The other reason that we didn't share is that I was suffering from serious burn out. Twelve years working in the health food industry and seven of those operating our own business had done me in. I was so burned out I had lost my passion for even this, my first love food.

I tried to rekindle my passion in January with another blog called Tofu and Tree Bark but I just couldn't get it rolling. Why am I back now? Because I needed to get back on track and get healthy again and I need something to channel my energy into.

This summer we had the best news. The dream of expanding our family finally became a reality at the end of June, I got my long awaited positive pregnancy test. We were over the moon excited and shared the news with family almost immediately. As the weeks wore on I was compelled to start telling friends but something didn't quite feel right, I was filled with worry.

It eased a bit at my 8 week check up when I got to see our baby and it's little heartbeat for the first time. At 12 weeks we heard the baby's heartbeat on the Doppler and I felt more at ease. We started to tell friends as we ran into them, we ordered our son a shirt proclaiming his only child status would be over this coming March. We dreamed of names and wondered whether we were having a boy or a girl.

I got very sick over Labor Day weekend and when I woke up Tuesday morning I knew something was wrong. I went to see the my doctor and that's when we found out our baby had passed away. I was 14 weeks along.

In the last few weeks I've had a really hard time dealing with things. I've been really sick with complications from the miscarriage and have felt really low. The husband and I both decided that a step in the right direction would be to clean up our diet again and try to be our healthiest for us mentally and physically. I've been cooking up a storm because I've always found it relaxing but I didn't decide to do the blog again until I saw a spot on the Today Show with Martha Stewart. As corny as this sounds she has always been my inspiration in the kitchen and seeing her reminded me of the dreams I once had.

I hope this latest journey back into health can heal me mentally and physically and I hope you find some tasty inspiration to take steps to be your best as well.  

With love,

Christine 

Taco Pizza

This is one variation for toppings for our Cornmeal Crust. We have played with many variations over the years and this is our favorite. Enjoy!

For Taco Pizza:

1 C Refried Black Beans

1/2 C Salsa

1 lb Ground Beef

1/2 Yellow Onion-diced

1 pouch Frontera Taco Sauce (or your favorite taco seasoning)

8 oz Shredded Cheddar or Pepper Jack Cheese

Olives, Tomato, Lettuce, Green Onions, Guacamole and Sour Cream for garnish

Cook together beef and onions. When browned add taco sauce and take off heat. Meanwhile stir together beans and salsa in a medium bowl. Spread beans over pizza crust, spread beef over beans and top with cheese. Bake 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees and top with desired toppings when done!

Cornmeal Pizza Crust

We probably make Pizza once a week. It's a easy dinner that will be a hit with the whole family, but we don't limit ourselves to just the traditional pie. We have a sourdough bbq pizza in our rotation, leftover corned beef and cabbage, roasted butternut squash and pecans with blue cheese, whatever we have leftover we've made into pizza. Recently someone mentioned taco pizza and while it sounded good I wanted to try a different sort of crust. This crust has a cornbread flavor with a slight crunch that makes it perfect for taco pizza, it would probably be good with BBQ or leftover chili as well.

Ingredients:

1/4 C Unsalted Butter

1 1/2 C Whole Milk

4 1/2 Tsp Active Dry Yeast

1 1/2 C Medium Grind Cornmeal

2 1/2 C Unbleached Flour, plus more for kneading *

2 Tbs Evaperated Cane Sugar

2 1/2 tsp Wheat Gluten

1 tsp Sea Salt

*(You could use Bread Flour instead and drop the extra gluten)

In a small saucepan melt butter, when melted add milk til warm but not hot. While butter is melting combine yeast, cornmeal, flour, sugar, gluten and salt in a large bowl. (I use gluten in this recipe because I am replacing a significant amount of flour with cornmeal. Cornmeal does not contain gluten and without the added gluten the crust would not rise correctly or hold together.) Once butter and milk are warm, mix into flour and stir until it forms a loose ball. Sprinkle a little flour onto counter, turn dough ball out onto counter. Knead dough adding flour as needed until dough is slightly tacky and elastic.

Place dough into lightly oil bowl, cover with a clean towel and place in a warm spot until dough has doubled in volume, about an hour to an hour and a half. 

(Before rise)

(After Rise)

Divide dough in half, roll out half of the dough and place on a pizza pan. 

Place other half of dough in plastic bag and store in refrigerator for up to 10 days (it may turn dark by 10 days but if it smells fine it's all good). Preheat oven to 400 degrees, top with desired toppings and bake for 15-20 minutes.