Vegetarian Chilaquiles!

I found this recipe for a healthy, vegetarian version of chilaquiles and I was so excited! It comes courtesy of EatingWell.com. I modified the recipe slightly – so my version is below. Feel free to check out EatingWell for the original. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 1/2 cups corn, frozen (thawed) or fresh
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 9-10 corn tortillas, quartered
• 1 19-ounce can mild red or green enchilada sauce
• 1 1/4 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and red pepper and cook, stirring often, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in beans, tomatoes, corn, cumin and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are heated through, about 3 minutes.
3. Scatter half the tortilla pieces in the pan. Top with half the vegetable mixture, half the enchilada sauce and half the cheese. Repeat with one more layer of tortillas, vegetables, sauce and cheese. Cover with foil.
4. Bake the casserole for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the casserole is bubbling around the edges and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes more.

Nutritional Information

Makes 10 servings

Per serving: 243 calories; 10 g fat

9 g protein

5 g fiber

Tortillas scattered in pan

Veggie filling cooked, ready to assemble

Assembly complete! Going into the oven...

Finished product - hot from the oven

One serving, ready to eat!

Awesome Recipe for Grab and Go Breakfast Cookies!

Today I got my daily email from HungryGirl (a healthy food site that I LOVE), and I was reminded of a recipe for high fiber, low calorie breakfast cookies that were great! I thought the idea to increase fiber while still maintaining great flavor was super creative. The recipe is below – I completely credit this post to HungryGirl – I didn’t come up with this recipe myself If you like this recipe, you’ll probably like a lot of HungryGirl’s other recipes – so definitely visit the site and check them out!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup regular oats (not instant)
• 6 tbsp. whole-wheat flour
• 1/4 cup Fiber One bran cereal (original), ground to a breadcrumb-like consistency in a blender or food processor
• 1/4 cup Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
• 1/3 cup Gerber Peaches (or another brand of pureed peaches, found in the baby food aisle)
• 1/4 cup canned pure pumpkin
• 1/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original)
• 1 tbsp. golden raisins
• 1 tbsp. Ocean Spray Craisins (original)
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar, not packed
• 2 tsp. Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Chop raisins and Craisins into small pieces. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, flour, Fiber One crumbs, Splenda, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well.

In a separate bowl, dissolve Coffee-mate into 2 tbsp. hot water. Add all other wet ingredients (pureed peaches, pumpkin, and egg substitute), and mix well.

Add liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, and stir until completely blended. Slowly sprinkle chopped raisins and Craisins into the batter, making sure they don’t all stick together.

Spray a large baking pan with nonstick spray, and spoon batter into 4 evenly spaced circles. Spread batter out a bit with the back of a spoon. Place pan in the oven for 12 – 14 minutes (until tops of the treats are just slightly crispy). Remove pan from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Then grab ‘n go!

Nutritional Information

Makes 4 servings, 1 serving = 1 cookie

154 calories, 1.5g fat

5g fiber

5g protein

Easy, Healthy Margherita Pizza Recipe

I love a great, simple pizza. When we were in Italy – the Margherita Pizza was one of our favorites! Of course – it’s an indulgent meal since it usually has very little fiber (white flour for the pizza dough) and is high in fat (full fat mozzarella + olive oil). So – I decided to recreate the recipe at home and make it a lot healthier!  Recipe is below – enjoy!

Ingredients

• Fresh whole wheat pizza dough (Trader Joe’s is my favorite – but I’m sure you can find it at any health food store)
• Cooking spray
• 1 Tsp olive oil
• 5-6 garlic cloves, minced
• 4-5 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (if you can find a good low fat variety, mix half of that with half of the full fat version)
• 1-5 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (basically, use this to taste – if you are a huge balsamic fan, put more, if not – put less )
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil

Directions

1. Spread the whole wheat dough on a pizza pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees for 5 minutes (until the crust starts to puff up). When you pull it out of the oven, it looks like this:

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2. Brush crust with 1 tsp olive oil, sprinkle minced garlic evenly over the crust.

3. Top with sliced tomatoes until entire crust is covered, leaving a half inch border. It will look like this:

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4. Sprinkle evenly with cheese. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes (until cheese / crust starts to become golden)

5. Remove from oven, sprinkle pizza evenly with sliced basil. Drizzle balsamic vinegar over pizza. Cut and serve!

Finished pizza, sprinkled with basil

With balsamic vinegar

Nutritional Information (approximate – per slice):

Calories: 150-175

Fiber: ~4g

Protein: ~8-10g

Be a Picky Eater – Watch Your Portions!

Portion control is KEY to maintaining a healthy weight. You could eat the healthiest food in the world, but if you eat too much of it, you’ll likely still gain weight! And in the world of “super-sizing” – our notion of what one serving is has become ridiculously skewed.

Oftentimes, people ask me how I watch my portions. In an ideal world, you could look at the nutrition labels, measure out what “one serving” looks like, and eat that. But that’s just not realistic! Especially when most of us eat at restaurants or grab food “on-the-go.” One thing I’ve found useful is “eyeballing” what the right portion should be. And I was really excited when I found this article on WebMD that gives real-life examples of what normal portions should look like. The link to the article is here – but I’ve also included examples from the article below. Hope this is helpful!

So to start with – what should you be aiming for in terms of servings? The helpful WebMD folks have compiled a list which I’ve included below:

• 1.5-2 cups fruits & 3 cups vegetables
• 6-7 servings grains: ½ cup rice or pasta, 1 slice of bread, 1 cup cereal, etc.
• 3 servings low-fat dairy: 1 cup milk or yogurt, ¼ cup cottage cheese, 1.5 ounces cheese
• 5-6 one-ounce equivalent servings protein
• 5-6 portions (teaspoons) oils and fats
• 100-300 “extra” calories from snacks, dessert, alcohol or overeating

Example #1: Baked Potato

1 vegetable serving = 1 small potato = the size of a computer mouse

For an even healthier option, try a sweet potato!

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Example #2: Pasta

1 serving of grains = 1/2 cup pasta = 1/2 a baseball

For healthier options: Opt for whole wheat/whole grain pasta for extra fiber, Skip Alfredo or creamy sauces in favor of Marinara

Example #3: Waffles/Pancakes

1 serving of grains = 1 waffle OR 1 pancake = size of a CD

For healthier options: Opt for whole wheat or buckwheat pancakes/waffles for more fiber or order fresh fruit with your dish as a topping

Example #4: Bagel/Muffin

1 serving grains = 1 small muffin = size of a tennis ball OR 1/2 medium bagel = size of a hockey puck

Healthy tip: Get a whole wheat bagel; or instead of a bakery muffin, get a high fiber English muffin

Example #5: Cheese

1 serving dairy = 1 portion cheese = 4 dice

Healthy tip: Get low fat cheese!

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Example #6: Meat

3 oz portion size = deck of cards or the palm of your hand (minus fingers)

But you only need 5-6 oz per day!

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Example #7: Peanut Butter

1 serving protein = 2 Tbsp peanut butter = 1 golf ball

Note: 1 portion size (2 Tbsp) has 190 calories and 17g fat – while this is good fat, you definitely don’t want to overdo it!

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Other Quick Portion Size Tips:

• 1 portion of rice = 1 filled cupcake wrapper
• 1 portion size of fat = 1 teaspoon = a stack of 4 dimes or 1 poker chip
• 1 portion size of chips = 1 handful = 6 large tortilla chips or 20 potato chips or 20 mini-pretzels
• 1 portion size of dessert = 1 small scoop of ice cream = 250 calories

Happy Eating!

Barbecue Black Bean, Red Pepper, and Corn Pizza!

I remember the first time I ate a black bean pizza – it was at CPK and I had ordered their Tostada pizza. It was sooo yummy and I wanted to recreate it in a healthier version. Then I saw a recipe on EatingWell.com for a Smoky Corn and Black Bean Pizza, and I decided to combine the two recipes to create a version of my own! My modified recipe is below – you can access the EatingWell recipe in the link above.

Ingredients

• Whole wheat pizza dough (I like Trader Joe’s fresh pizza dough!)
• 4-5 Tbsp Barbecue sauce (Try to get one with the least amount of sugar – Trader Joe’s has a great variety – picture at the end of this post)
• 1 cup shredded low fat mozzarella cheese
• 1 15oz can black beans
• 1 8oz can corn
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 small red onion, diced
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spread out the dough on a pizza pan, spread the barbecue sauce on top

2. Heat a large pan over medium heat, add 1 tsp olive oil, black beans, diced red onion and chili powder – cook until heated through and onions begin to caramelize (5-10 min)

3. Spread black bean mixture over barbecue sauce

4. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Then sprinkle diced red pepper and corn on top of the cheese.

5. Bake in oven for 10-15 min (depending on pizza dough and heating instructions)

6. Remove from oven, drizzle 1 Tbsp barbecue sauce over the pizza. Serve and enjoy!

Approximate Nutritional Information: My estimates are, if you cut the pizza into 8 slices (and are using the Trader Joe’s whole wheat dough), each slice should have about 150-200 calories!

Trader Joe's Barbecue Sauce

Black Bean Mixture

Pizza right before baking

Finished Pizza, ready to eat!

Super Healthy Mac & Cheese!

I LOVE Macaroni and Cheese. But I very rarely ate it because it’s always full of fat and unnecessary calories. And then there’s the boxed Kraft version which is probably worse than eating the full-fat version made from scratch!

So I was very excited when I found this recipe on EatingWell.com. I made a few slight modifications, and it turned out great – super cheesy and flavorful!

Ingredients

• 8 ounces whole-wheat elbow noodles, (2 cups)
• 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped broccoli
• I also added 1 10 oz bag of spinach
• 1 3/4 cups low-fat milk, divided
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (I used black pepper and it was fine)
• 3/4 cup shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (If you don’t like the flavor of Dijon use 1/2 tsp-1tsp depending on your taste)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta for 4 minutes. Add frozen broccoli and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the pasta and broccoli are just tender, 4 to 5 minutes more.

2. Meanwhile, heat 1 1/2 cups milk in another large pot over medium-high heat until just simmering. Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup milk, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl until combined. Add the flour mixture to the simmering milk; return to a simmer and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Remove from the heat and whisk in Cheddar, Parmesan and mustard until the cheese is melted.

4. Drain the pasta and broccoli and add to the cheese sauce. Add in the spinach. Return to the heat and cook, stirring, over medium-low heat, until heated through, and spinach is wilted.

5. Sprinkle pepper on top when serving (to taste).

Enjoy!

Nutritional Information

Serving size: 1 and 1/4 cups

412 Calories

13 g Fat; 7 g Sat

22 g Protein

7 g Fiber

Black Bean and Quinoa Stuffed Red Peppers with Avocado Lime Sauce!

I recently found this recipe on a fellow foodie’s blog – thank you Natalie’s Killer Cuisine! I made this recipe for dinner last night and it turned out great! I modified the recipe to make it a little healthier and a little less spicy. My slightly modified recipe is below, check out Natalie’s Killer Cuisine for the original.

Ingredients – Stuffed Peppers

• 4 large Red Bell Peppers, roasted
• 2 cups Quinoa, cooked
• 1 15 oz can Black beans rinsed and drained
• 1 8 oz can corn rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup Tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped
• 1/3 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
• 1/3 cup fat free Sour Cream
• 1 Tbsp Salt
• 1/2 – 1 Tbsp Black Pepper (depending on how spicy you want the filling to be)

Ingredients – Avocado Lime Sauce

• 2 Avocados, ripe
• 2 Limes, juiced
• 2 heaping tbsp fat free Sour Cream
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Black Pepper
• 3 – 4 TBS 1% milk (as needed – I didn’t need to use any for my sauce)

Directions – Stuffed Peppers

1. Roast bell peppers: you can roast them on the grill or in the oven. I roasted mine in my oven under the broiler. I pre-heated the oven to 375 degrees, and then broiled the peppers on high for a few minutes until the skin was blistery/starting to blacken, and then I turned them over and broiled them on high for another few minutes until the other side was done.
2. Cut off the top of the pepper (save for garnish) and scoop out the insides, and the seeds and discard.
3. Combine all other ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Spoon into bell peppers.
4. Bake in oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest 3 minutes. Enjoy with avocado lime sauce.

Directions – Avocado Lime Sauce

1. Chop Avocado, juice limes: combine all ingredients in blender or food processor and puree until smooth.
2. Slowly add milk until desired consistency. Sauce will hold its color at least 8 hours (mine has held its color for over one day in the fridge in a tightly sealed container)

Peppers just after being roasted

Quinoa mixture

Stuffed Peppers, Fresh out of the oven!

Finished product - yum!

Ubuntu – Healthy Organic Napa Valley Restaurant!

A few weeks ago, my husband and I decided to try a new restaurant in the Napa Valley – Ubuntu Restaurant and Yoga Studio. We were intrigued by their menu and mission – most ingredients in their dishes are grown in their very own garden behind the restaurant, everything is organic, all of the dishes are vegetarian and can be made vegan, and we were intrigued by their menu items with names like “gargouillou of the ubuntu SPRING GARDEN (v) today’s LEAVES, FLOWERS, ROOTS, and SHOOTS…hazelnut “soil””

We entered the restaurant and were immediately struck by the warm, cozy ambiance with a touch of elegance. Our waitress was extremely knowledgeable about all the menu items, was very patient in answering our questions as she took our order, and recommended an amazing German Riesling to pare with the food.

Here are some pictures of the food we ordered – it was a journey of gourmet flavors, inventive dishes, and taste explosions. I’d highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who wants to expand their palate and experience a whole new world of food!

Chickpea Fritters with an amazing romesco sauce

Another view of the chickpeas

Heirloom tomato salad with Burratta cheese and all kind of fresh vegetables and fruits

Flatbread with fresh greens, vegetables, flowers from the garden with pecorino cheese, dehydrated beets and hazelnuts sprinkle

Summer squashes with puree of squash and Indian inspired flavors

Organic yellow corn grits from arbuckle infused with goat’s milk whey, caramelized wild onion bulbs, “62.5” egg, agretti, garlic

gargouillou of the ubuntu SPRING GARDEN (v)

today’s LEAVES, FLOWERS, ROOTS, and SHOOTS…hazelnut “soil”

Picky Eats in Brazil!

Hi Everyone,

Sorry I haven’t posted in a while – I’ve been on vacation in Brazil! While I was there, I was definitely on the lookout for healthy, veggie friendly food. We visited Iguazu, Manaus in the Amazon, and Rio. For Iguazu and Manaus, we had all inclusive hotels so all our meals were made for us. In Rio, we had to do our own food hunting. So for anyone traveling to Brazil – here were some of the places I loved, as well as some tips to stay healthy while on vacation (especially if your meals are pre-prepared for you!). One other thing I realized was that there aren’t many healthy, veggie friendly options in Iguazu and the Amazon (not much variety anyway) – so I definitely had to be creative when finding my meals. Hope the tips below are helpful!

Iguazu Falls

In Iguazu, we stayed at the Hotel das Cataratas. It was a beautiful hotel in an amazing location – I’d definitely recommend it to anyone going to Iguazu! Breakfast was amazing at the restaurant. The only problem was lunch & dinner didn’t have many veggie friendly options.

For breakfast – these were the best options:

• Fresh Fruit: tropical fruit in a tropical location is awesome! Watermelon, Papaya, Pineapple, Melon and Strawberries were all good options
• Cereals: Museli, Oats, Bran/Fiber cereal (looks like Fiber One or All Bran cereal in the US) with milk and sugar substitute
• Hot Tea (Brazilian black tea is awesome!)
• Whole Grain bread with a thin slice of cheese (The breads were thinly sliced and small in size which makes for a great breakfast addition). Just a quick tip – whole wheat bread in Portugese is “Pan Integral” in case you need to request it specially!
• Freshly squeezed juices: We had orange, watermelon – just make sure not to have more than one glass because juice also has lots of sugar/calories!

For lunch – our options were usually cheese and bread, or pizza. By the way – most pizza in Brazil is not prepared with sauce so keep that in mind when you’re ordering it! I would generally try to have a huge breakfast, have a very thin slice of pizza plus a lara bar or cliff bar for lunch, and then a medium sized dinner.

For dinner – at the hotel, they allow you to pay less for the buffet if you’re only eating veggie food. I would usually focus on the soups (but make sure the soup doesn’t have added cream in it because then it loses its health benefits!), request whole wheat bread, have a few thin slices of cheese, eat a few of the salads and the fruit plate. The cheese plates would often have walnuts so I’d get a handful of those and make a cheese/walnut sandwich which tasted pretty good! I’d avoid the pasta because it was usually white pasta with a creamy or oily sauce. I’d also order tea with milk to make sure I was getting enough protein. The fruits would generally be enough fiber, but if I felt like I wasn’t getting enough fiber, I’d have a lara bar after dinner as “dessert.”

Manaus/Amazon

We stayed at The Amazon EcoPark Jungle Lodge which was also a great lodge in an awesome location! Meals were all included here as well – and I’d generally follow the same meal plan as I did in Iguazu.

The only tip I’d add here is that raw vegetables/fruits are to be avoided in the underdeveloped parts of Brazil – unless they are peeled and washed. Luckily, in both the EcoPark and in the Iguazu hotels, the fruits/vegetables were pretty safe to eat. I still avoided super raw salads and tried to go for cooked vegetables, but I ate the fruits with no problem.

In the EcoPark, they had awesome veggie friendly soups every night. They also always had some sort of cooked veggies and rice. The main thing I had to be cognizant of was whether I was getting enough protein or not. I’d try to have cheese/milk with the meal, but I also relied heavily on my Lara Bars, Cliff Bars and Trail Mix to get me through.

Rio

Rio was GREAT for healthy veggie friendly eats! We stayed in a condo in Ipanema, which had tons of restaurants within walking distance of our place. One thing I noticed was that Rio had TONS of freshly made juice bars – which were great snacks throughout the day! Here’s a list of the restaurants we visited and what I ordered below:

• Restaurante Liquido: http://www.liquidorestaurante.com.br/ – this was, by far, my favorite restaurant in Brazil. They had dozens of freshly made juices (with no cream, or high calorie items added!) I had three juices there and all were awesome: Pineapple Mint and Ginger, Pineapple, Strawberry and Apple, and the Green Drink: which had a bunch of fruits and vegetables of which I can only remember a few: Apple, Parsley, Celery, Kale, Broccoli, Pear (I think). It tasted GREAT and I’d highly recommend it! It was a wonderful way to start the day. Liquido also has an amazing Soy Burger – even my carnivorous friends liked it! And some good crepes (but make sure not to get calorie rich fillings – e.g. potatoes, cheese, syrups, etc.
• Bistrô Cafeína: Great breakfast, fresh fruits, excellent coffee, good sandwiches and soups. The tomato soup was clearly made with fresh tomatoes and looked great, the sandwiches are tasty as well – make sure to order with whole grain bread and don’t be afraid to do some “surgery” on your sandwich if it comes with too much cheese! I often take out cheese from my sandwiches – one slice is generally enough.
• Armazem do Cafe: This place was great for coffee and a quick bite – I just got a whole grain sandwich with cheese (of which I only ate half and took out a lot of the cheese to make it lighter!)
• Aprazivel Restaurant: This place was in an amazing location (great views, cool outdoor seating). The bruschetta and mushroom lasagna were great. The lasagna is HUGE so share it with someone Also – it was good because it was mostly mushrooms and light pasta, with cheese only on top.
• Rota 66: http://www.restauranterota66.com.br/orestaurante.asp – they had great Mexican food which was also veggie friendly (their refried beans are great and vegetarian!). I ordered the 3 soft tacos with refried beans, cheese, lettuce and pico de gallo – I asked for no sour cream. The tacos were really big so I only ate 2 of the 3 for portion control We also ordered guacamole for the table which was great.
• Sushi Leblon: http://www.sushileblon.com/ – most of the time I don’t like sushi because there aren’t many veggie options, but this restaurant was really good! I ordered the Miso Soup, Edamame, and 1 order of the california rolls with no crab. The rolls had mango, avocado and cucumber and were really tasty! I ate 3 of the rolls, a huge bowl full of edamame, and the soup. It was very filling!
• Vegetarian Social Club – we never actually made it here, but heard it was great for veggie friendly eats
• We also ate at a great cafe on Barao de Torre in Ipanema, but I can’t remember the name. They had a wonderful veggie soup and a baguette with brie and apricot jam – yum!
• There was also a wonderful pizzeria on Barao de Torre around the 200 block, but I can’t remember the name If you’re ordering pizza – here are some of my tips:
  • Try to order a pizza with veggies on it (to get some more fiber into your meal)
  • Avoid thick crust pizzas – thin crust has much fewer calories
  • If your pizza shows up and is super oily, blot the oil!
  • If your pizza shows up and is super cheesy, don’t be afraid to take off some of the cheese before eating it
  • Remember portion control! 2-3 small slices is usually enough Stay away from those super jumbo sizes that could equal 3/4 of a small pizza!

Other Healthy Snacks to take on Vacation

Lara Bars – these are great because they’re super natural (most bars have only 2-5 ingredients), have very healthy fats (from nuts), have good fiber/protein content, and are quite filling! Each bar is only about 200 calories which makes it a great snack or meal substitute/addition (if your only options for lunch are white bread and cheese).

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My favorite flavors are: Cashew Cookie, Peanut Butter Cookie, and Pecan Pie – but all of the bars are delicious!

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Cliff Bars – These are always a good staple to have around. Each bar has at least 5g fiber and ~10g protein. They’re about 220-260 calories – also a good snack or meal substitute that’s pretty filling! My favorite flavors are Oatmeal Raisin and Chocolate Peanut Crunch.

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Ziploc Bags of Whole Grain Cereal – my favorites are Kashi Heart to Heart and Original Puffins

Ziploc Bags of Whole Grain Crackers – my favorite is Kelloggs All Bran Crackers

Gum/Mints – good for those long plane rides!

Trail Mix – I like to look for mixes with Almonds, Walnuts, Raisins, Cashews (at least). Anything else is a bonus Stay away from mixes that have added chocolate chips, M&Ms, added oils (like peanut oil), added sugar (for the dried fruit). 1/4 of a cup should be around 130-150 calories max. Trader Joe’s has some great trail mixes, and Bear Naked makes good ones also!

Whole Wheat PB&J (for the plane rides) – I make about 2 sandwiches when going on long international flights. They’re much tastier/healthier than most plane food and are good for emergency situations (like if you land at midnight and have a 6 hour layover when nothing is open at the airport!

Quinoa and Corn Griddle Cakes With Black Bean Salsa!

I haven’t cooked a new recipe in a really long time! Things have been so busy that I’ve just fallen into old patterns of cooking and eating – I’m sure a lot of you can relate to that But today I was inspired by a recipe I found in Prevention Magazine – and it turned out great! Recipe and pictures are below – enjoy!

Ingredients – Cakes

• 1/2 cup quinoa (I used Trader Joe’s organic quinoa)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup reduced sodium vegetable broth
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 2 scallions, finely chopped (1/4 cup)
• 1/4 cup shredded low fat mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 Tbsp 1% milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce (I used Tobasco)
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 2 Tbsp olive oil

Ingredients – Salsa

• 1 15oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1.5 cups halved grape or cherry tomatoes
• 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions

1. Prepare cakes: Mix quinoa, water, and broth in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 min. Fluff with a fork

2. Combine quinoa and remaining cake ingredients except oil in a medium bowl

3. Make salsa: Mix together all salsa ingredients in a large bowl and set aside

Quinoa Mixture

Salsa Mixture

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4. Heat oil on large, nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Scoop a generous 1/4 cup of the quinoa mixture at a time and drop onto skillet, flattening into pancake shape with back of spatula (makes 8 cakes). Cook until browned on bottom, about 3-4 min. Flip carefully and cook about 3-4 min longer. Serve with black bean salsa, regular prepared salsa (I like Pace Picante) and guacamole (I like Trader Joe’s prepared guacamole).

Quinoa Cakes just beginning to cook

Finished Cakes!

Dinner is served!

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Nutritional Information

Serving Size – 2 griddle cakes & salsa

Calories: 344

Protein: 15g

Fiber: 10g

Fat: 13g