Quinoa Veggie Tacos in Lettuce Wraps

Three ways to make your traditionally not-so-healthy tacos... healthy. Add a lot of vegetables, swap the tortilla for lettuce and pack in the flavor with fresh ingredients. You won't miss the meat in this recipe because you get so much protein from beans and quinoa, that it almost tastes like meat. You can really experiment with the toppings and add whatever you want. I was inspired by this original recipe from Feasting not Fasting, and took the idea and ran with it. Just taking my own short cuts and adding in flavors we love. 

Quinoa Veggie Tacos in Lettuce Wraps

• ½ cup quinoa, rinsed
• 3 ears of corn, kernels cut off the cob
• 1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 yellow/orange bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh salsa (not jarred, the kind in the refrigerated kind) 
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• ½ lb. sliced white mushrooms
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1½ tsp. chili powder
• ½ tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne (if you like things spicy) 
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro, split in half
• 1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 head of lettuce, pick leaves that are good lettuce wraps, I like bibb leaves
• 1 avocado, diced

1. Combine 1/2 cup quinoa and 1 cup of water in a pan. Bring to a boil. Cover, knock the heat down to  low. Keep and eye on it. In about 10 minutes it should be close to done. When all the water is gone - it's done. 
2. While quinoa cooks, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and bell pepper and sauté about 3-4 minutes. Add in corn and sauté another 2 minutes.
3. Add garlic and mushrooms and continue cooking until veggies are cooked and lightly browned.
4. Stir in salt, chili powder, paprika, cumin, cayenne, half of the chopped cilantro, and ¼ cup salsa. Add quinoa and black beans. Stir and remove from heat.
5. Serve veggie filling, grated cheese, additional salsa, cilantro, and avocado in lettuce wraps.

**Makes 4 servings ( you can make leftovers into a salad too!)
**3 on Bryce's dish scale. Pot, skillet, knife, cutting board. A strainer for rinsing quinoa and beans. 

Veggie Packed Pad Thai

Don't be scared of fish sauce. It really packs in the flavor in this dish. Just ignore the smell. Then, experiment with the vegetables. I have made it a little different every single time, based on what looks good at the store. I use a combination of a spiralizer and a julienne peeler to get the vegetables to a similar consistently as the noodles. I stumbled upon this idea while searching for ways to use Thai Basil one night and combined several ideas I saw for this because I didn't want to leave anything out. And even though I originally tried it because of the Thai Basil, regular basil will work too. Thanks to Pinch of Yum for the inspiration to try something like this. I can't eat a lot of eggs, but a lot of the recipes I saw included an egg, and I am sure that would be good in this just like any pad thai. 

 Veggie Packed Pad Thai

• 6 oz thin brown rice noodles
• 1 zucchini
• 1 yellow squash
• 3 whole carrots
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 orange bell pepper
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoon olive oil, divided
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 3 tablespoons low sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (chili paste) 
• 1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/4 cup thai basil or regular basil cut into thin strips

1. Check the noodle package for instructions on how to cook. Use the way that has them soak in a bowl, it keeps them from overcooking and becoming too mushy. When they are done, drain and set aside
2. To get your veggies into noodle form and ready to roll: For Zucchini and squash, use a spiralizer or a julienne peeler. Set on a paper towel to get the water out while finishing next steps. For carrots, after peeling outer layer, use a julienne peeler to get into thin strips. Use a good knife to cut your bell peppers into thin strips. (I have seen blogs that say you can use a spiralizer to get these into noodles, but it doesn't work in mine, so I just cut it very thin.)
3. Create a sauce by whisking together the fish sauce, brown sugar, honey, broth, white vinegar, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and samba oelek. 
4. Heat sesame oil and olive in a large skillet. Add in your green onions and garlic and saute for about a minute until its fragrant and soft. Add in your other veggies (zucchini, squash, carrots, peppers). Saute until just warmed and softening. You don't want to do it too long, or they will get mushy. Transfer them a dish and set aside. 
5. Heat other tablespoon of olive oil. Add in your rice noodles and stir fry for about one minute. 
6. Add in the sauce and stir around until it's well heated. 
7. Add back in your vegetables and toss it all around until it's well heated. 
8. Serve a heaping bowl with chopped peanuts, cilantro and basil on top. 

***Makes 4 servings

***4 on Bryce's dish scale. Spiralizer, julienne peeler, cutting board, knife, skillet, bowl for sauce, and I like to use a bowl to pile up my veggie noodles as I make them. 

Indian Spiced Chickpea Curry

Indian food is another way to get a ton of flavor into food and keep it healthy. This dish is PACKED with flavor and you can tone down the spices if you don't like it as hot. I got the original idea from this Eating Well recipe, and adapted it and saved a few steps. We have made it where we served it with brown basmati, regular brown rice and whole grain naan. All are delicious, just pick what you are in the mood for or have time to make. In this case we served it with Naan at dinner and put the leftovers with 90 second brown rice. This is a super simple version because you use canned beans. You can beef it up by adding more vegetables if needed like roasted carrots and cauliflower.

Indian Spiced Chickpea Curry

• 1 medium serrano pepper, cut into thirds
• 5 large cloves garlic
• 1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped (1-inch)
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons fresh turmeric grated (if you can't find do a teaspoon of ground turmeric)
• 28 ounce can of crushed tomatos, no salt added
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed
• 2 teaspoons garam masala
• Fresh cilantro, roughly chopped, for garnish

1.  If you are serving with brown basmati, start it first, it takes the longest
2. Pulse serrano, garlic and ginger in a food processor until minced. Add onion; pulse until finely chopped, but not watery.
3. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add coriander, cumin and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
4. Add tomatoes and salt to the pan. Reduce heat to simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes until it's heated well. Add chickpeas and garam masala, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes more so flavors have time to develop.
5. Serve topped with cilantro. 

  **Makes 4 servings
**3 on B's dish scale, food processor, cutting board, big pot and lid.

Quick Burrito Bowls

Burrito bowls are such an easy way to make a quick healthy lunch that feels like you are splurging. They require very little effort in throwing together and can pack a flavorful and satisfying punch. I make mine without meat, packed full of veggies, but if you had some leftover chicken steak or shrimp you could throw a little of that on there. We have been making these for lunch for years, and this is my go to lunch on a tough week. You can easily change it up with toppings, but this is our current favorite combo. This makes 2 bowls. I have also been able to stretch it out to three bowls by doing a little less rice and beans and corn in each and padding it out with more lettuce- making it more like a "burrito salad".

Quick Burrito Bowls

• 1 package 90 second whole grain brown rice (uncle bens or generic brand)
• 1 can of black beans, rinsed
• 1 can of corn
• 1 small can sliced black olives
• 10-12 sliced "tamed" pickled jalapeño (I then dice them up)
• 10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 avocado diced
• lime juice
• 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
• 1/4 cup reduced fat cheddar
• A sprinkle of Tortilla strips (the kind you find in the salad toppings section)
• 4 baby bell peppers sliced into thin strips
• 1/2 cup fresh pico or salsa for each bowl (1/4 cup for each bowl)
• 1/4 cup shredded lettuce

1.  After you microwave the rice, toss it with a little bit of lime juice and cilantro for flavor.
2. Split rice up between two bowls (I make it right in the tupperware I am taking to work for lunch)
3. Split up the black beans evenly between the two bowls. Do the same with the corn and black olives. 
4. Top that mixture with the diced jalapenos, cherry tomatoes, avocado, cheddar, bell peppers and lettuce. 
5.  I bring the pico to work in a separate container to put it on top right before I eat. I also bring the tortilla strips in a baggie to toss on at the last minute. 
6. When I try and stretch this to three bowls, I add a lot more lettuce to each and don't heat it up when I eat it, so it's more like a salad. 
7. When I do it as described for 2 bowls, I heat it for 60 seconds so it's just warm and then top with the salsa and tortilla strips.  

Spicy Cauliflower-Olive-Pancetta Pasta

I don't know if you have noticed, but Cauliflower is all the rage right now, But I have been on this band wagon for a while. I love beefing up recipes with hearty vegetables. And this is yet another example of how pasta CAN be healthy if you do it right. To save time you could use those bags of  "Cauliflower Rice" or pearls that they have started selling in the produce section.   This Inspiration for this one comes from eating well. 

 Spicy Cauliflower-Olive-Pancetta Pasta

• 12 oz whole wheat spaghetti
•  1 tablespoon olive oil
• 5 cups riced cauliflower (or finely chopped cauliflower)
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 cup diced pancetta
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 cup chopped hot cherry peppers 
• 10 pitted kalmata olives chopped
•  1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
•  1/4 cup flat leaf parsley chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup shaved Parmesan

1.  Cook pasta until almost done, and make sure to save a cup of starchy pasta water. Drain the pasta. 
2.  While the pasta is cooking, heat oil in a large skillet to medium heat. Cook the cauliflower, pancetta and red pepper flakes until the cauliflower starts to brown. 
3. Add garlic and stir. Add wine and increase heat to high until the liquid evaporates. 
4. Stir in peppers, olives and season with salt and pepper
5. Add the pasta and  the reserved pasta water. 
6. Simmer until the water is almost cooked off.
7. Top with parsley and cheese before serving.

 ***Makes 4 servings 
***3 on Bryce's dish scale,  2 pots a cutting board and knife.

 

Easy Naan Pesto Veggie Pizza

This recipe is a perfect example of craving pizza, but wanting to be healthy, so finding a way around it. We were at the store and wanted to do something simple for lunch. So we grabbed a couple of whole wheat naan breads, some pre-sliced and cut veggies and some fresh mozzarella and made this up as we went. It was delicious. And proof that you can find ways around your unhealthy cravings and make them healthy!

Easy Naan Pesto Veggie Pizza

 

• 2 whole wheat naan breads
• one package of fresh veggies cut up (we used a combo of stir fry like veggies, broccoli, zucchini, bell pepper, onion, mushrooms and even some carrot)
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 oz fresh mozzarella torn into tiny bits
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 fresh tomato, diced 
• 1/4 cup prepared pesto
• salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Put the naan breads on a baking sheet sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.
2. In a skillet, heat the olive oil. Throw in vegetables, season with salt and pepper and saute for about 10 minutes until they start to get tender. Add in red pepper flakes and saute for about 5 more minutes. You want the veggies fully cooked before putting them on the pizza.
3. While the veggies cook, put the naan in the oven to start it heating for about 5 minutes so ti starts to crisp up.
4. Pull out the naan, brush each with a bit of pesto, enough for flavor that won't make it soggy. Top with veggies. Then top with fresh tomato and fresh mozzarella.
5.  Put in the oven and bake for about 7-10 minutes until cheese melts.  

**Makes 2 pizzas
 **It's a 2 on Bryce's dish scale, baking sheet, skillet!

Things I wish I had always known about eating and cooking healthy

When my husband and I started our journey to try and be more healthy, I honestly didn't realize how easy it could be.

Once you change your mindset, and start eating healthy, you realize how your body should feel.

And if I had discovered some of the tricks and tips I learned from this journey a long time ago, I think I would have started it earlier. So here I am trying to condense some of these things into one list to help you out. I will add to it as I go and cook. It's not all about calories and fat. It's about being healthy top to bottom. I don't ever count carbs or dairy. I just try and balance it all and listen to my body. Cutting out processed foods and sodium has been the biggest thing for me. I'm less puffy. So here are some little things to help you along the way.

1. Rinse your canned beans and peas. This gets rid of a lot of the sodium, and the stuff that can make you gassy.
2. Rinse your capers. Again, this gets rid of the super sodium flavor.
3. Stock your pantry well so you always have the makings to whip something up and don't have to rely on fast food or delivery. Find my staple list here. But the gist is always have quick cooking brown rice, canned beans, a chicken or vegetable broth, canned lentils, frozen quick cooking quinoa, frozen fruit and veggies. Fresh salsa, and your favorite healthyish cheese (I like mozzarella and reduced fat cheddar and reduced fat feta)
4. Always use corn tortillas for tacos and don't heat them in the microwave. Your body processes corn better than flour, they are often smaller and compliment the flavor of your tacos. Don't microwave them or they will fall apart. Heat them on the grill for a char, do them directly on your indoor gas grill, or do them in a dry pan.
5. When trying to cook quick weeknight meals, don't assume your protein has to be meat and fish and chicken, look to beans!
6. Don't try and deprive yourself. Don't cut out all carbs or all dairy. Just look to have a balanced meal.
7. Eat what you want, just make it at home. If you want a burger, make it at home. You can control the fat content of the beef, the quality of the cheese, the toppings and therefore control the fat and calories and sodium more too. (just don't do this all the time) 
8. Use plain Greek Yogurt instead of sour cream. It's healthy, and honestly, it tastes the same to me.
9. Roast your veggies. They taste much better than steamed and you will figure out you don't really hate things like Brussels sprouts, cauliflower etc.
10. Not all fat is bad. Eat avocados. Eat olive oil. It's good for you.
11. Snacks. Oh Snacks. Snacks is where I was always the worst. Not everything labeled healthy is healthy. So find your favorite and mix it up. I love a little hummus with cucumber slices for dipping for an afternoon snack. Fresh fruit is always good. Kale chips are delicious. Nuts stick with you. Im always finding something new I love in the healthy snacks section. When I need a little crunch I go to quinoa or lentil chips (simply 7 is a great brand) or air popped popcorn in a bag (NOT THE MICROWAVE KIND). I love bags of dry roasted edamame.