Buffalo blue quinoa burgers & clean eating sweet potato fries

Cheese. Spicy. Sweet potatoes. These are a few of my favorite things. I also adore quinoa ... For such a little guy, it packs such a nutritional punch! Good source of plant based protein, packed with antioxidants and anti inflammatory phytonutrients and so adaptable for tons of meals. 

Quinoa burgers are incredibly adaptable and you can easily play around with a variety of great tastes and flavors. Now the cheese I use in this particular recipe does make it a little more decadent than normal, but hell ... its cheese. These would still be good and even healthier if you nixed the cheese ... but I'm not quite ready for that sacrifice. If you dare to be cholesterol free and/or vegan to do the cheese-less route, tell me what you think!

To me, its a combo that lets me enjoy the delish badness of cheese and buffalo wing sauce, but without feeling as guilty as I used to when I could easily eat a dozen wings. Try it as a substitute for the Superbowl! Here's one of the spins I like to do when making quinoa burgers ... Enjoy!!

Ingredients

(I made this with enough sweet potato fries for 4 servings, and the burgers came out to 7 servings)

Sweet Potato Fries

-3 medium sweet potatoes

-1 tsp chipolte powder

-1 healthy shake of "Jamaica Me Crazy" (this is "shut the front door" amazing with sweet potatoes ... plus its sodium free and packed with flavor)

-1/4 tsp garlic salt

-1 tbsp organic brown sugar

-1 tbsp melted coconut oil (I also adore coconut oil with sweet potatoes .. it accentuates the natural sweetness oh so good)

1. Preheat your oven to 400. Slice your sweet potatoes into lil fry cuts.

2. Place your cut fries into a bag or a container with a lid. Then pour the rest of the ingredients on top & shake until well distributed.

3. Spray a cooking pan with coconut oil, and place your fries on your pan. Cook until browned, approx 20-30 min.

Nutritional Information

Servings: 4

Calories: 146

Fat: 3.5

Saturated Fat: 3

Poly: 0.1

Mono: 0.2

Trans: 0

Cholesterol: 0

Sodium: 133.8

Carbs: 27

Dietary Fiber: 2.2

Sugars: 8.2

Protein: 1.5

Vitamin A: 390%

Vit C: 37.5%

Buffalo Blue Quinoa Burgers

-2 cups uncooked quinoa, cooked & cooled

-5 cloves garlic, minced & 1 shallot, minced - I recommend browning in a pan with a splash of EVOO before adding with the rest of the ingredients

-1 tsp chipolte powder

-1 can Trader Joe's Cannelini beans, mashed (a great way to mix in fiber & good stuff all while not affecting the flavor and helping keep the burgers together!)

-1 egg

-1/2 cup Frank's Buffal Sauce

-1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

-3/4 cup 2% Mexican blend cheese

-1/2 cup blue cheese (I also highly recommend buying a block of blue and cutting it yourself ... Oh so amazing!)

1. Get a large mixing bowl and mix all your ingredients. Blend together just as you would regular hamburgers or meatballs.

2. Heat a large pan over medium-high flame & add a light splash of EVOO and evenly distribute over the surface of the pan.

4. Place your quinoa patties in your pan and cook on one side til browned (approx 6-8 min?). Cook on each side.

5. I serve mine naked with avocado slices. This is also great with additional cheese topping, grilled onions, guac, ranch or ketchup.

Nutritional Information

Servings: 7

Calories: 379

Fat: 10.5

Saturated: 4.9

Cholesterol: 23.6

Sodium: 904.9

Potassium: 33.3

Carbs: 50.5

Fiber: 8.6

Sugars: 4

Protein: 18.8 g

Calcium: 26

Iron: 18.8%

Savory Slow Cooker Raspberry Pork & Thyme Quinoa

One of my favorite things I have in my kitchen is my slow cooker, much like many other people. I like that it allows me to embrace my lazy side, but still gives you tasty little creations. I also like that it naturally allows you to keep the moisture and tenderness of foods without having to add a ton of oils or fats to compensate.

Lately, I've been on a savory food kick .. part embracing winter, part using what I have bought for my budget for the month. 

I created this one to get some of the extra stuff out of the fridge to make way for next months shopping trip. And at about 329 calories per serving (pork and quinoa) and a whopping 29 grams of protein, I'm a happy (and full) lady!

So lets begin ... 

Makes 5 servings

Ingredients

-Boneless pork roast (mine was approx. 1 lb? .. I adore from Costco the pork loin that includes pork chops, pork roast, and a sirloin roast as well .. you get a TON for under $20 typically!)

-1 cup raspberries (I used frozen due to it being winter ... and it was leftovers from my smoothie recipes)

-1 tsp fresh thyme

-1 tsp fresh rosemary

-3 sliced sage leaves

-1 tsp EVOO

-1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (one of the best parts of this recipe)

-1/2 tbsp dijon mustard

-6 minced garlic cloves

-1/4 tsp pink himalayan salt (or sea salt)

-1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

For the Quinoa

-1 cup dry quinoa

-1 tsp "Better than Bouillon" .. I used beef for this round ... feel free to go wild and use chicken or veggie

-1 tsp thyme

1. Turn your slow cooker on "low" and spray with a non stick cooking spray (or Misto that thing ... goodness I love my Misto)

2. Throw everything in ... I put my meat and berries in full on frozen. No defrost!

I like to coat the roast with all the ingredients to help let the flavors saturate and keep it tender

3. Cook on low for approx 6 hours ... I had off that day, so after 6, I switched it over to "warm" while I started the quinoa and had a glass o' red. It was in for a total of about 8 hours and did totally fine. 

4. Cook your quinoa per directions ... 1 cup quinoa typically needs 2 cups of stock ... I always throw in a splash of EVOO. At this time, also throw in your thyme.

5. While the quinoa was cooking, I felt like an au jus style sauce would be nice too for the meat. I love the contrast of the sweet raspberries with the acidy tang of balsamic, so I scooped about 1/4 cup of juice from the slow cooker and reduced it on high heat for approx 3-5 min. 

6. Serve. It was dude approved ... the fiance man had high remarks for it :)

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 329

Fat: 11.2

Saturated Fat: 2.7

Polyunsaturated: 0.2

Monounsaturated: 2.2

Trans: 0

Cholesterol: 74.3

Sodium: 131.1

Carbs: 28.4

Fiber: 3.2

Sugar: 5.3

Protein: 29

Iron: 19.7%

Breakfast Quinoa

I love a good warm breakfast cereal when the temperatures start to drop. This is my first winter down in Southern California and sad to say, I've already been spoiled by the perpetual nice weather ... I have been dying of cold these last couple weeks ... With it only being in the 40's. I'm a brat. After living in Reno & Tahoe for the past few years, and growing up with the icy cold winters of Philly, you would think I had more of a tolerance :)

Typically, I'm a fan of steel cut oatmeal, but I decided to start experimenting with quinoa in the mornings for its protein content (see how I live on the wild side?) This a delicious and filling breakfast ... Feel free to try to substitutes that I suggest below! You can start with the basics and really create a bunch of different tastes. Enjoy!

4 servings 

-1 cup quinoa

-2 cups coconut milk (and extra for the end ... 1 or so cups)

-4 tsp vanilla extract

-1 tsp cinnamon

-1/2 tsp nutmeg

-1/2 tablespoon brown sugar

-2 tablespoons flax seed

-1/2 tablespoon chia seed

Nummy things to add!

-fruit of your choice ... Bananas (I tried this for this round ... I used 2), peaches (frozen or fresh), cherries 

-1/4 cup nuts of your choice ... Almonds, pecans, walnuts 

-1/4 cup shredded coconut

For the calories & nutritional content noted below, I used bananas, pecans & shredded coconut

1. I substituted cooking my quinoa with coconut milk instead of water. In your pan, add all your base ingredients for your cereal ... Coconut milk, quinoa, flax seed, vanilla, sugar, nutmeg & cinnamon. Cook until all liquids are dissolved

2. Now this is a lovely thing about this recipe ... It's incredibly freezer friendly! In a large Rubbermaid container, I covered the bottom with a large spoonful of quinoa and then layered sliced bananas, a sprinkle of pecans & shredded coconut. Repeat until full. On top, I sprinkled the chia seeds. 

3. If you decide to eat this deliciousness now, pour a little more coconut milk on top. 

Nomnomnom ...

Calories

338

Fat: 16.9

Saturated: 1.9

Polyunsaturated: 3.9

Monounsaturated: 7.4

Cholesterol: 0

Sodium: 7.2

Carbs: 41.8

Dietary Fiber: 5.5

Protein: 7.9

Recipe of the Week!

While its been ages since I have even decided to start posting, my recent culinary adventures have been too nummy not to share with others!
Luckily, I enjoy figuring out the tastes of all sorts of foods and figuring out the good ways to put them together. Throw in a copious amount of wine while doing so and its inevitable to at least make one successful dish.
I have been on a quest to stick to a $350 a month food budget, and still stay within the confines of a clean and healthy diet. In the future, I do intend on posting my meal plans and recipes I come up with ... for now ... on to the tasty adventure I made tonight.

And so we continue ...

Chipotle Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

its sweet. its spicy & smokey. its cheesy. its healthy ... and approximately 350 calories per serving!
hell. yea.

- 1 chicken breast (approx 6 oz)
- 6 cloves of garlic, minced (is that a lot of garlic you may ask? yes. yes it is. get use to it)
- 3 medium to large sized sweet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- about 1.5 tsp chipotle chili powder, divided (adjust to your flavoring ... it is spicy!)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 pinches garlic salt
- 1 cup raw spinach, sliced
- 1 15 oz can of reduced sodium black beans
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa (i also recommended cooking the quinoa with "better than bouillon chicken" ... if this is not available to you, use another chicken/veggie bouillon of your choice to cook quinoa per directions instead of water)
- 1/2 cup (ish) of shredded cheddar or mexican blend cheese
- 1 avocado
- 1/4 cup sliced green onions, divided
- handful diced cilantro
- salsa of your choice - I recommend a sweeter salsa for this recipe - a corn or peach salsa would be fabulous
- also recommended - Trader Joe's Coconut Oil Spray (its the bestest)

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Slice potatoes in half and place cut side down in a baking pan coated in Coconut Oil Spray. Give a nice lil spray to the skin side of the taters and sprinkle with salt, pepper & a dash o chipotle chili powder. Cook for approximately 25 minutes. Keep the oven nice n toasty (still at 400) after you remove your sweet potatoes.
2. While the taters are cooking, place 1/2 tbsp of coconut oil in a deep cooking pan and melt. Sprinkle both sides of a chicken breast with garlic salt and chipotle pepper & cook just until thoroughly white. Remove from pan and add the rest of the coconut oil & saute garlic until golden.
3. Now that your garlic is awesome, add your cumin & 1/2 cup quinoa and cook per directions (typically for 1/2 cup quinoa, add 1 cup water with bouillon)
4. In the same quinoa pot, mix in the can of black beans, approx 1/2 of the sliced green onions and spinach until the spinach is wilted. Dice your chicken breast & also add into the mix.
5. Take your cooled potatoes and remove the flesh from the skins. Add the flesh into your bean/quinoa/spinach/chicken tastiness & mix until everything is well distributed. Place the skins back into a re-coconut oil sprayed baking pan & now fill those skins!
6. Sprinkle copiously with cheesy goodness & place in your hot oven until cheese is melted.
7. Remove from oven and add as much cilantro, green onion. avocado and salsa as your little heart desires
8. Nomnomnomnom ...

Calories and health information per serving (sans salsa ...)

Calories: 323

Total Fat (g) 12.2
Saturated Fat 5.2
Polyunsaturated 1
Monounsaturated 3.1
Trans 0

Cholesterol (mg) 23.2
Sodium (mg) 451.8
Potassium (mg) 733.7

Total Carbs (g) 41

Protein (g) 13.3

Now I'm new ... comment, compliment, criticize ... ask me whatever! Mostly ... enjoy! :)