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Roasting vegetable season has arrived!

Roasting vegetables caramelizes the edges and adds a roasted taste and pleasing texture to vegetables.  Here is one of my favorite combinations.  You will need fresh brussel sprouts, cauliflower and butternut squash, cubed or cut into bite sized pieces, coconut oil and a large rimmed baking sheet.

Pre heat oven to 400 F, allow coconut oil to melt in pan.  Add fresh brussel sprouts, halved or quartered, cubed butternut squash and cauliflower pieces.

Stir and roast until crispy, brown and caramelized.  This will take about 30-45 minutes, depending upon how many vegetables you have in the pan.  Check and stir every 10-15 minutes.

Add seasoning at the end (otherwise the veggies get soggy), Bavarian is one of our favorites from Penzey’s.

Enjoy!

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Best Spinach Salad ever!

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I tasted this spinach salad the other night…fantastic!

Warm Spinach and Sweet Potato Salad

3 cups peeled and diced sweet potatoes

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 apple diced

8 strips of bacon, diced

2 leeks, thinly sliced

6 oz of fresh baby spinach

Handful of sliced almonds for garnish

Dressing

¼ cup olive oil

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp spicy brown mustard (from Trader Joe’s)

Fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 tbsp of dried basil

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Preheat your oven to 400. Toss the diced sweet potatoes with the coconut oil and spread evenly on a baking sheet. Bake in your preheated oven for 20 minutes. While the sweet potatoes are baking, cook the diced bacon in a large skillet. Once the bacon is crispy, add the sliced leeks in with the bacon and saute for another 4-5 minutes. Put your spinach in a large salad bowl and add the bacon and leek mixture. Toss well, letting the warm bacon wilt the spinach. Add the apples and sweet potatoes to the salad and toss together. In a separate bowl whisk together the salad dressing ingredients. Pour over the salad, mix well and garnish with the sliced almonds.

 

 Enjoy!

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Protein & Plants on the go…

Egg cupcakes

 These eggs make easy “on the go” snacks or meals that provide Protein & Plants, a requirement every time you eat. And, they are a good way to clean out the vegetable drawer- use whatever veggies you have on hand!

 12 eggs

½ cup chopped onions

8 sliced of nitrate-free, BEST quality bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Add about 1-2 cups of your choice:

Spinach, roasted red peppers, chopped mushrooms, chopped broccoli, chopped tomatoes (fresh or sundried), shredded zucchini

Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Line muffin tin with foil or silicone cupcake holders, not paper.

Whisk eggs with salt & pepper, add veggies. Fill muffin cups ½ to 2/3 full and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown on top.

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The Dirty Dozen

Let’s start with what is in your kitchen…

When it comes to produce, I am often asked “when is it important to purchase organic fruits and vegetables”?

The following are know as the “Dirty Dozen”, fruits and vegetables that carry high levels of pesticide residues, choose and buy organic for these:

Apples, Celery, Strawberries, Peaches, Spinach, Nectarines (imported), Grapes (imported), Sweet Bell Peppers, Potatoes, Blueberries (domestic), Lettuce and Kale/Collard Greens

The “Clean Fifteen” have few pesticides residues and it’s not necessary to choose organic for these:

Onions, Sweet Corn, Pineapples, Avocado, Asparagus, Sweet Peas, Mangoes, Eggplant, Cantaloupe (domestic), Kiwi, Cabbage, Watermelon, Sweet Potatoes, Grapefruit and Mushrooms.

 

 

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Fix Real Food

This blog is for you: someone who wants to practice eating real foods, someone who is looking for answers in the very confusing world of health, someone who is ready to change her/his life by changing the fuel you give your body.

Real food, you don’t unwrap it, it doesn’t come in plastic packages.

Look at my posts for quick, easy meal  ideas that are nourishing and full of flavor, two crucial ingredients for a “healthy” food choice.  Bon Appetit!