Superfood Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

This may be the prettiest salad I have ever seen. And perhaps the most delicious. It took a bit of time to make (longer than expected), but it was more than 100% worth it. I was put off by the amount of oil in the dressing - 6 tablespoons - but it is really quite tasty. I had never fully seeded a pomegranate before, but I used the water method (breaking it open under water and letting the seeds fall to the bottom) and it worked really well. Does take some time though. Anyway, JUST MAKE THIS! It will be well worth your time.
(Note: this recipe says that it serves 5, but I would say about 3 meal-sized servings. For me anyway.)

Salad:
1/2 cup dry quinoa
1/3 cup red onion, chopped
1 orange, peeled and segments chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup pomegranate arils (about 1 pomegranate worth)
1 cup corn (thawed if frozen, can also use canned)
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
salt & pepper

Lemon Vinaigrette:
2 lemons, juiced (need 1/4 cup juice)
2 garlic cloves, microplaned or finely minced
dash of sweetener (agave nectar, stevia or white sugar)
salt & pepper
6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


1. Cook quinoa according to package directions. Set aside to cool.

2. For the Lemon Vinaigrette: combine all ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid, and shake to combine. Or, add lemon juice, garlic, sweetener, salt and pepper into a small bowl and whisk in oil.

3. Combine cooled quinoa with red onion, orange segments, avocado, beans, pomegranate arils, corn, cilantro, salt and pepper. Pour Lemon Vinaigrette over the salad and stir to combine. Serve cold or at room temperature.


Original recipe here 

Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Soup

This might be my favorite soup recipe ever. It's easy and very healthy. If you buy the butternut squash pre-peeled/diced, this doesn't even take long at all!
I highly recommend an immersion blender for pureed soups. Pouring hot soup into a blender is never a good idea.


1 tablespoon canola oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 pound butternut squash, peeled and diced
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 medium-size Yukon gold or russet potato, peeled and diced
6 cups water, chicken stock, or vegetable stock
Salt to taste

1. Heat the oil in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and stir together until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the squash, sweet potatoes, white potato, and water or stock, and bring to a simmer. Add salt to taste, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes, or until all of the ingredients are thoroughly tender.

2. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup (or you can put it through the fine blade of a food mill or use a regular blender, working in batches and placing a kitchen towel over the top to avoid splashing). Return to the pot and stir with a whisk to even out the texture. Heat through, adjust salt and add pepper to taste.

Original recipe here 

Zesty Wheatberry Black Bean Chili

This recipe is really easy and delicious, but beware of the spices. I bought diced tomatoes from Trader Joe's, and when I was there they were out of the regular tomatoes and only had some that were spiced with green chiles. I decided to leave out the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce because of that - and I'm very glad I did, because the dish was certainly spicy enough! I suggest having a bit of milk on hand for this one. I'm definitely going to try making this again, and make sure I have the correct ingredients.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large yellow bell pepper,chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
2 14-ounce cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
1-2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
2 cups vegetable broth
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
2 cups cooked wheatberries
Juice of 1 lime
1 avocado, diced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans, tomatoes, chipotle to taste, broth and brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes.

Stir in cooked wheat berries and heat through, about 5 minutes more. (If using frozen wheat berries, cook until thoroughly heated.) Remove from the heat. Stir in lime juice. Garnish each bowl with avocado and cilantro.

Original recipe here 

Chocolate Crackles (or Krinkles, whichever you prefer)

I love these cookies. My family uses a different recipe that calls for espresso - but I prefer the chocolate on its own. Only downside is that you need to chill the dough, which I always forget! I think it's easiest to leave the dough in the fridge overnight, instead of sitting around for 4 hours waiting....but, whatever works.

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a separate medium bowl, stir together cocoa, white sugar, and vegetable oil. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then add vanilla, stirring to combine. Add in flour mixture and stir until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 4 hours, or up to overnight.
(Or you can do what I did, and just mix all of the ingredients together at once! I don't buy the mixing the ingredients separately.)

2. Preheat oven to 350F. Line cookie sheets with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Put confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl. Using a 1-inch cookie scoop or rounded tablespoons, roll dough into balls with your hands, then roll in confectioners’ sugar to coat. Place on prepared cookie sheets 2 inches apart. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Original recipe here

HP

A little surprise gift at the office never hurt anyone :)

Haven't had a chance to try any of these yet, but I certainly will soon!!