Banana Peanut Butter Yogurt Smoothie with a twist.

by Filed Under: Breakfast, Brunch, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Smoothies, Snacks, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free, Yogurt 4 Comments

IMG_4765

 

Can’t get your kids to eat “good” foods?  How about sneaking them in to what they love?  I posted a recipe for a smoothie a few months ago that had an avocado in it and I had several people email me questioning the taste and my sanity.  Ha!  Then they tried it on their 2, 3 and 4 year olds and guess what… the kids were asking for more!  Now I don’t go telling my kids what I put in their smoothies because then they would complain or not drink them.  Today was the perfect example… my oldest daughter went to the gym yesterday to workout with my 75 year old dad.  He kicked her tush!  I got a text this morning that stated simply “I’m broken.”  Ha ha.  Now, I shouldn’t laugh but every day of my life I have a sore muscle or muscles.  The constant pursuit of fitness will yield these results.  So with a chuckle, I knew I had to make her a nice big protein smoothie to help her sore muscles rebuild.  She, along with the workers that I have in my house today installing our pool table, all gobbled it down and loved it.  None the wiser of the ingredients!

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Smoked paprika grilled shrimp.

by Filed Under: Rubs, Seafood, Vegetarian, Wheat Free Leave a Comment

IMG_4469

Today my girls and I headed out to the mall to buy some clothes for back-to-school.  Bracing myself I survived the crowded, dark, music-blasting, perfume-bombed stores to yield quite a stash of clothing for two teens to be quite happy with (despite not wanting school to start).  Rushing home, I needed a good dinner idea that could be made in a flash.  This came to mind instantly!  This dish is great to top a salad or serve as an appetizer.  Smoky and packed with flavor.  This rub is also great on any light and flaky fish (or chicken/pork).  It whips up in second and grilling only takes a few minutes.  I’m serving atop a fresh bed of baby spinach.  Perfect, easy summer dinner on a busy day (they all seem that way lately).

Ingredients:

1-2 lbs of large to extra large peel and eat shrimp
1 tablespoons of smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt (I used LoSalt to use a low sodium option)
1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper

Directions:

Mix the spices in a bowl until well-combined.  While preheating your outdoor grill or pan (on an outdoor grill you will need a mesh pan for grilling so the shrimp don’t fall through the grates) – preheat to 375-400 degrees.  Rub the shrimp in the spice mixture.  Coat each side really well.  Grill for  4-5 minutes on each side.  Remove and serve or top your greens and enjoy.

— Knead to Cook

Fast, fresh tomato sauce.

by Filed Under: Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Gluten Free, Pasta, Sauces, Vegetarian, Wheat Free 2 Comments

IMG_4446

Just back from an awesome 12 day vacation (my Cabot posting will be up this week as it may take days to download all of the pictures from my fun race weekend in Maine) and inundated with fresh tomatoes from the garden.  Today, as it always seems to be as we return back from vacationing in August – was filled with school shopping on the brain.  I had one child done and just received the other’s list for supplies.  So after many errands today, I had just enough time to whip up my down and dirty tomato sauce.  No roasting tomatoes here… just a quick, fabulously fresh sauce that you can top your veggie or whole wheat pasta with and enjoy with a loaf of crusty bread and a glass of wine.  I love a good sauce you can make and just let simmer on the stove while you do a million other things… and that is just what was needed today.

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Gazpacho.

by Filed Under: Appetizers, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Gluten Free, Mexican, No bake/cooking required!, Party Foods, Soups, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free 4 Comments

IMG_3671

 

I love making vegetarian dinners for my family.  It’s important to me to do this a few times a week.  This one, I admit, is super easy when you have a bounty of fresh tomatoes flowing from the garden daily.  I typically make salsa or roast my tomatoes for sauce but I thought it would be a nice night for a cold soup with some crusty bread and tons of flavor!  If you love salsa, you will totally flip over this soup.  Also, great to make the night before or a few hours before dinner and let the flavors mingle while chilling.  Also great for an appetizer idea served in tall, thin glasses as shooters.  You can top this with fresh sliced jalapeños or cold shrimp would be perfection too!  Plus another great thing about this recipe, no heating up your kitchen and preparation is super fast!   Vegan.

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Shrimp Salsa.

by Filed Under: Appetizers, Dips, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fish, Gluten Free, Mexican, No bake/cooking required!, Party Foods, Salsas & Guacamole, Seafood, Side dish, Snacks, Vegetarian, Wheat Free Leave a Comment

IMG_3635

 

Lately I haven’t been eating any meat, actually it’s been quite a few months since I have.  I haven’t had a taste for it so I adjust my sails and go forward.  I’m sadly not a seafood lover but I do love, and have since I was pregnant with my oldest 15 years ago, cold shrimp.  Not cooked shrimp, it has to be cold.  I actually think I love the spicy cocktail sauce more than anything (the shrimp being a venue to get that to my mouth) but as of late, I started venturing out of my comfort zone and this little dish is now one of my favorites that I cannot stop eating.  Hashtag addictive!  Ha ha.  This is the perfect salsa to serve with tortilla chips, as a side or straight up out of the bowl like I do it.  It is so good and so refreshing.  It also proves my point once again, clean eating can be easy, quite tasty and fun.  Plus the longer this has to sit in the fridge, the tastier it becomes.  Easiest recipe ever!

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Dried Fava Bean Hummus.

by Filed Under: Appetizers, Condiments, Dips, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Gluten Free, Indian-inspired., Party Foods, Snacks, Stocks/Broths, Vegetarian, Vitamix, Wheat Free 4 Comments

IMG_3526

I often buy bags of beans (thanks to Bob’s Red Mill) that look interesting or something I haven’t tried before.  Now I’ve eaten fresh fava beans but never dried so I grabbed the bag and vowed to make something this week (and not let it get buried in the back of pantry never to be seen again).  This is a crazy (yes, another) week with three swim meets, one of which we are hosting amongst construction in our house, training and our swim banquet.  My eye is twitching in stress as I type this (ha ha).  So in my free hour that I was blessed with today, I grabbed the beans and cooked them according to the package directions.  It only took about 40 minutes.  The texture is similar to a baked potato when done.  They are packed with protein, fiber and iron!  Perfect as I haven’t been eating meat in the past few months.  And this is what I did with them after draining…

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Tomato Basil Vinaigrette.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Dips, Gluten Free, Italian-inspired, No bake/cooking required!, Salads, Salsas & Guacamole, Vegetarian, Vinaigrette, Vitamix, Wheat Free 4 Comments

IMG_2569

 

This is like a fresh burst of garden flavor. I just love the flavors.  Now I know the color may be deceptive (thanks to the yellow tomatoes I used and the dark balsamic) but don’t be swayed.  The flavor is incredibly summer.  Packed with freshness that will make your tastebuds dance!  Great for topping your favorite greens, proteins or for dipping veggies into.  I keep dipping my veggies into it… so good!  Easy, clean and vegan!

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Haricot Vert Salad. {green bean salad}

by Filed Under: Brunch, Gluten Free, Party Foods, Salads, Vegetarian, Vinaigrette, Wheat Free 6 Comments

IMG_2497

 

Haricot verts are a thinner green bean to the domestic green bean.  I found these beauties at our farmer’s market and I thought they would make the perfect salad (dinner for me) side dish for my family.  Easy to make.  I used my roasted red pepper balsamic vinaigrette dressing to dress it.  It a great dish for these hot days of summer when you don’t want to eat anything super heavy.  Can also be prepped ahead of time and leftovers taste better the next day after absorbing lots of the flavors.  Again, I encourage you to use what extras you have on hand to add to your salad to make it your own.

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Roasted red pepper balsamic vinaigrette.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Gluten Free, Italian-inspired, No bake/cooking required!, Salads, Vegetarian, Vinaigrette, Vitamix, Wheat Free 9 Comments

 

IMG_2409

I have always loved making my own vinaigrettes.  I use them for topping salads, veggies, meats – whatever!  This one is a favorite as my family really loves the flavor of smoked paprika.  This dressing has a dark, earthy flavor – which pairs up beautifully with greens or mixed vegetables.  I prepared a mixed green bean salad and topped it with this dressing last night for dinner.  It was so good.  In fact… everyone kept dipping veggies into the dressing despite my efforts to photograph it for this post.

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook

Zoku Pink Lemonade & Greek Yogurt Popsicles.

by Filed Under: Frozen Pops, Snacks, Vegetarian, Wheat Free, Yogurt, Zoku Popsicles 3 Comments

IMG_1554-2

I caved!  I admit it.  Every single time I’ve been in Williams Sonoma or Sur la Table I have eyed the Zoku pop maker.  I hate gadgets but this one, I truly believe, I would use… really!  I’m so hyper focused on eating clean and feeding my family better foods, less processed without ingredients I can’t pronounce this fit the bill.  I really don’t like store-bought ice creams or treats and prefer my family eat better.  So this weekend I had a coupon for Williams Sonoma and I opted to purchase a triple Zoku maker.  My youngest has taken over, like a mad scientist, working her magic with different combinations.  She has had a blast with it and of course, healthier ingredients that she can pronounce!  That being the point.  This was her first batch.  I love her creativity and excitement in the kitchen!

[Read more…]

— Knead to Cook